Central to our environmental sustainability efforts is our approach to waste. We’ve committed to achieving zero waste to landfill at all our operating sites by 2025 but we’re not stopping there. We’re also rethinking our approach to consumer packaging, so that we use less plastic and better quality plastic.
Glanbia has committed to all consumer packaging materials being 100% recyclable, reusable or compostable by 2030. In 2021 our packaging team in Glanbia Performance Nutrition baselined our packaging footprint. The team is building out the strategy to partner effectively with our suppliers and vendors to develop packaging solutions across our brand portfolio. We’re making progress on this agenda already.
Optimum Nutrition has launched new ready to-drink (RTD) Protein Shakes, using 51% recycled PET (rPET), exceeding the new UK threshold of minimum 30% recycled plastic. With rPET requiring less energy to recycle than it takes to manufacture bottles using virgin PET, an rPET content bottle has a lower carbon footprint. In 2021 this change impacted over 1.2 million bottles.
The GPN UK team also successfully implemented a reduction in packaging for the Optimum Nutrition Gold Standard Pre-Workout, BCAA, and AMIN.O. Energy product lines, by reducing the excess headspace and the length of the scoop. This project resulted in a reduction of over five tonnes of plastic annually.