CIRCULAR ECONOMY -
For a growing number of restaurant operators and diners, our throwaway culture is no longer acceptable. The growing landscape of zero-waste dining and zero-waste restaurant logistics is cause for optimism that a low-waste restaurant industry is achievable.
MATERIALS & PACKAGING -
New innovations from Nature Valley and the winners of Closed Loop Partners’ Beyond the Bag challenge continue to chip away at consumer packaging waste.
CIRCULAR ECONOMY -
Plastic credits are poised to generate the momentum necessary to launch a circular plastic economy and give brands the opportunity to act. In order for brands to take action, they will need to follow these four priorities …
INNOVATION & TECHNOLOGY -
Best known for its fashionable reusable bottles and hydration accessories, S’well recently launched GroundS’well — a sustainability-as-a-service platform that aims to help brands improve consumer habits while decreasing single-use
plastic waste.
MATERIALS & PACKAGING -
Conservation X Labs’ $650,000 challenge aims to “harness planetary genius” to create solutions to replace plastic in textiles and textile manufacturing.
CIRCULAR ECONOMY -
Many plastic-based building materials that could be recycled aren’t, because most companies haven’t yet figured out how. The AZEK Company cracked this code, and diverted nearly 300 million pounds of waste from landfills in 2019.
INNOVATION & TECHNOLOGY -
Meal kits are synonymous with excessive packaging, but they have a crucial
redeeming feature — they reduce food waste. At Just Salad, that got us thinking:
Could we drastically reduce packaging to make meal kits an unambiguous
environmental win?
INNOVATION & TECHNOLOGY -
Kao’s new ESG strategy is centered on kirei (meaning “clean, beautiful and orderly”) — a Japanese word that is not yet well known worldwide but one that the company aims to make aspirational throughout the world.
CIRCULAR ECONOMY -
Since scientists first raised the alarm about plastic pollution in the environment, brands have been slow to respond. Will the 2020 Brand Audit and new plastic-stewardship guidelines help accelerate an overdue shift away from single-use plastic?
ORGANIZATIONAL GOVERNANCE -
Corporations are afraid of their costs rising — shareholder interests demand a high return on investment in order for companies to remain profitable and competitive. But it simply will not remain viable to be a corporation that doesn’t address its impact on the environment.
MATERIALS & PACKAGING -
Set to arrive in 2023, the bottle — which will biodegrade in 18 months — will replace 80M plastic bottles currently produced by Bacardi across its portfolio of brands every year.
MATERIALS & PACKAGING -
“Averted Plastic” encompasses any mismanaged plastic waste. Oceanworks has expanded its marketplace to include this material — incentivizing entrepreneurs worldwide to divert all plastic waste into economical recycling programs.
MATERIALS & PACKAGING -
Brand commitments are the engine driving recycled plastic’s transition to scale. Making recycled plastic content part of your brand story is hands down the most
important way to move the needle.
MATERIALS & PACKAGING -
To date, plastic recycling has nibbled around the edges. Just like with the climate crisis — no single nation or company can fix our plastic pollution problem on its own; success will only be realized via coordinated efforts.
CIRCULAR ECONOMY -
In 2018, we committed to grow the volume and quality of recycled plastics by 15% each year. This year, Rubicon is proud to report a 40% increase in the volume of recycled plastics from 2018 to 2019, which far exceeds our goal.
MATERIALS & PACKAGING -
More and more plastic is finally being recovered and recycled by companies that share Oceanworks’ commitment to ensuring that this feedstock
becomes — and remains — a first choice for the industry going forward.
MATERIALS & PACKAGING -
To fully address the plastic waste challenge, it is urgent to capture as much of it as possible. Diverting ocean-bound plastics is a worthy cause, but it only scratches the surface of the broader challenge of mismanaged waste.
MATERIALS & PACKAGING -
Beginning in 2021, McDonald's customers in select UK restaurants will be able to choose a reusable hot beverage cup, which can be returned to be sanitized and reused.
ORGANIZATIONAL GOVERNANCE -
COVID-19 has demonstrated that changes must be made in order to support and secure the future of travel. Along with elevated safety protocols, a genuine
commitment to sustainability provides a roadmap to a more responsible travel industry.