Sustainable Packaging at GourmetFuel
by Annie O Brien | 2nd Mar 2020
Sustainable Packaging at GourmetFuel
Here at GourmetFuel, we are all about doing our part in the battle for a more sustainable and environmentally conscious way of business.
What Actually is Sustainable Packaging?
The two big buzz words of 2020 are ‘Bio-degradable‘ and ‘Compostable’ when it comes to foodservice sustainable packaging, but what do these actually mean?
Compostable packaging is Brown-Bin compliant. Without a doubt for food businesses, compostable packaging is the most ethical and sustainable material. Therefore it does not matter if the packaging is covered in yogurt or still contains an apple butt – it can all go in one bin. Although the packaging can be made of a mix of materials, they are all completely compostable. In short, they all share the same recycling stream.
If the packaging is considered ‘Biodegradable,’ yes, it will biodegrade, but the length of time it will take to fully break down is not specified. Hence, could take anything from 4 years to 1000 years for something that is ‘biodegradable’ to fully decompose!
So What Does All This Mean for GourmetFuel?
As a result, we have decided to EVOLVE at GourmetFuel. Our team are now using the most environmentally sustainable packaging for all of our healthy meals.Evolve is made from an average of up to 85% recycled PET post-consumer content, using mixed coloured PET as attractive food packaging. Therefore products are created from a natural mix of recycled PET and their colour will vary. By using the different palettes of colours, it aims to help consumers to recognise they use a recycled and circular product. Furthermore, the evolvetrays are easily spotted by existing sorting infrastructure in the UK, NI, and ROI. They are then returned to the mixed jazz stream where they can be recycled into new food-safe products again and again.
To read more about Evolve packaging visit: https://versatilepackaging.ie/2019/10/10/evolve-tray-to-tray-recycling/