Driscoll’s Working to Scale Circular Plastics Economy, from Field to Clamshell
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Driscoll’s leads the produce industry in increasing the circularity of packaging and landfill diversion of agricultural plastics. It’s the first berry company to make public commitments and inject serious funding into innovation — with a goal to create economies of scale.
Driscoll’s berries are the culmination of a century’s experience of growing, harvesting and delivering the freshest, most nutritious berries possible to the market. And plastics are a key ingredient in Driscoll’s success, from improving berry production to increased shelf-life.
The family-owned company has been thinking creatively about reducing the negative impacts of plastic in its supply chain. It has joined the Sustainable Packaging Coalition and taken the “Berry Sustainable” joint pledge, and has been working to improve the circularity of its clamshell packaging. Driscoll’s has committed to 100 percent recycle-ready packaging by 2025, which includes:
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New labels that are easily cleaned and recycled
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New supplier requirements to incorporate more post-consumer content from clamshells
Pre-competitive collaborations and information-sharing with suppliers and industry groups helps scale existing solutions, spur new solutions, and cross-pollinate on recycling innovations across the industry and beyond.
In April of last year, Driscoll’s became the first US produce company to join the New Plastics Economy Global Commitment. The partnership, led by the Ellen MacArthur Foundation in collaboration with the UN Environmental Programme, sets a clear and unified vision for a circular plastics economy.
