Tetra Pak, together with supplier Braskem, has reported to be the first company to use plant-based polymers using the Bonsucro standards for sustainable sugar cane.
Mario Abreu, vice president, sustainability, at Tetra Pak, said: “Our plant-based polymers are fully traceable to their sugarcane origin. We see plant-based materials as playing a key role in achieving a low-carbon circular economy. In the future all polymers we use will either be made from plant-based materials or from post-consumption recycled food grades.”
The move is part of Tetra Pak’s recently launched Planet Positive initiative, which promotes industry stakeholders taking a broader view of sustainability.
This includes evolving the concept of circular economy to a low-carbon circular economy, where the industry looks beyond recycling and reuse to include the carbon impact of raw materials and manufacturing.
The use of plant-based materials such as paper and polymers, significantly reduces greenhouse gas emissions, supporting economic growth decoupled from fossil sources.
The plant-based polymers used in some Tetra Pak cartons, like their closures, are produced from sugarcane.
Plant-based polymer supplier Braskem has now reached 100% Bonsucro certified volumes of sugarcane derived bioethanol for Tetra Pak’s plant-based solutions, establishing full supply chain transparency.
Gustavo Sergi, renewable business unit leader at Braskem, said: “We have been working with Tetra Pak for more than 10 years, and Bonsucro Chain of Custody reinforces the Responsible Ethanol Sourcing Program with the assurance and traceability of the entire sugarcane value chain, all the way back to the growers and mills.”