Canadian company switching to salad containers made of recycled plastic
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Vegpro, the largest fresh baby lettuces producer in Canada, has teamed up with Cascades, a leader in eco-friendly recovery, packaging and hygiene solutions, to replace all Fresh Attitude salad containers, traditionally made from virgin plastic, with 100-per-cent recycled and recyclable plastic containers.
Custom-designed for Vegpro by Cascades, the containers are manufactured at the Cascades Inopak plant in Drummondville, Que.
The containers will have a smaller environmental footprint that also helps to extend the shelf life of salads. The containers improve airflow and prolong conservation time by limiting the build up of excess humidity. This way, the baby lettuces remain fresh and crisp longer.
A life cycle analysis of similar Cascades packaging demonstrated that, compared to virgin PET, using 100-per-cent recycled PET reduces GHG emissions and the consumption of non-renewable resources required to manufacture packaging. This scientific analysis was conducted by Groupe AGÉCO, an independent specialist.
“Vegpro is proud to keep pace with its consumers’ marked interest in more environmentally friendly, high-performance containers,” said Vegpro International founder and CEO Gerry Van Winden. “Since a semi-rigid package is necessary to protect our delicate baby lettuce, our challenge was to find a more ecological material than virgin plastic. We are proud to have met this challenge in collaboration with Cascades, thanks to the company’s expertise in eco-packaging design.”
“We are pleased to support Vegpro in achieving its sustainable development objectives,” said Luc Langevin, president and chief operating officer of Cascades Specialty Products Group. “This new packaging will give tonnes of plastic a second life, integrating them into the circular economy. We would like to thank Vegpro for their trust.”
