Grab-&-Go Packaging Redesign for EU SUPD-Compliance - Del Monte Hellas (Greece)
Companies distributing and selling popular grab-and-go single-serve products within the EU have been forced to remove banned single-use plastic items such as folded plastic spoons and sporks since the Single-Use Planstics Directive.
EcoTensil recently partnered with Del Monte Hellas in Greece as they redesigned their Fruit Express™ line of snacks to comply with the EU Single-Use Plastics Directive, which became a law in July 2021. While wanting to offer consumers grab-and-go convenience, Del Monte Hellas needed to replace the plastic spork and lid on it fruit and juice pots.
In Del Monte Hellas’ search to offer on-the-go convenience to consumers while reducing single use plastic waste, its Hellas team discovered EcoTensil, the paperboard utensil leader in the US. Since 2010. EcoTensil paper utensils have set the standard for the greenest cutlery available, and their new, plastic-free AquaDot© range has taken their mission to the next level. It has been a dozen years in the making to achieve this higher level of moisture barrier without any plastic whatsoever. By empowering regional teams to look for solutions that minimize the impact to the environment while ensuring the optimal protection of our products, Fresh Del Monte is furthering its commitment to sustainability *.
Del Monte Hellas opted for EcoTensil’s minimalistic mono-material OPP wrapping option to keep the spoon sanitary and safe for its customers. Adhered directly on the pot, it allows the plastic lid elimination as well for the most minimal use of material possible. This reduced the overall amount of plastic material by 29% compared to the previous option with lid and spork.
EcoTensil carton utensil offers a pleasurable fruit experience, having a significantly more positive impact on the taste of food than wooden cutlery. It has been third party tested to be on par with plastic in terms of no negative impact on the sensory the food.
Additionally, since the cups are not large, and a wooden utensil cannot be folded, the folded EcoTensil fits perfectly on the top or side of the cup. The flexibility and size of the Folded EcoTensil allow to use it on the different packaging formats of the fruit pot range (113g and 227g).
Being perfectly fit for purpose, the EcoTensil will last much longer than required for a cup of fruit, so can be reuse, and then degrades completely in a matter of months, even if it ends up in the ocean, unlike plastic, will remain in the environment for centuries or millennia. EcoTensil significantly outlasts any other ‘Jonny come lately’ folding paper utensil we have tested, which often break down before the food is finished.
Image: The redesigned DelMonte fruit & juice cup without the topcup for folding plastic spoon.
