Feature: Packaging
on board in cans, pouches or even recyclable cartons. D&F Marketing, Inc. and Colorado Foods offers ‘Friends Just Wine’, French wine in a can which is said to offer a longer shelf life and maintain optimum flavours longer than glass bottles or plastic. It ticks the environment- friendly box, is lightweight and available in 250ml and 187ml size. It seems certain that in future the only glass
bottles in the air will be in First and Business. Bestpartner Foods supplies a wide range of
In the UK, Thomson Airways has an immediate target to recycle 30 per cent of its onboard waste, and this will include some 13 tonnes of aluminium a year. The smallest measures help. The airline eliminated plastic packaging for its blankets, moving to a paper band, so that 900,000 plastic bags are no longer sent to landfill each year. Cathay Pacific recycles all paper waste
and beverage containers, and has removed aluminium food containers from some short- haul flights, replacing them with reusable materials. And Jake Backus, Coca Cola’s European sustainability director told us: “Airlines and suppliers that fail to be part of the solution are declaring themselves as part of the problem.” The company has found that the single
largest carbon impact for its products is the packaging, so the single largest carbon reduction opportunity is recycling that packaging. Coca Cola is already the largest user of recycled PET in the world. Its initiatives include a recycling zone at Manchester Airport where it aims to recapture 1 million plastic bottles and paper waste from 22 million passengers annually. It has also launched PET bottles that are partly made with renewable plant-based materials. A move towards lighter bottles for wines
has had a considerable impact too. Paul Sapin wines in 750ml MLP bottles weigh a third lighter than a glass bottle. Patrick Nilson, president of Haleybrooke International, promoting Paul
Above: Oakfield Farm Solutions’ Snack Pack for Southwest Right: Malmo Aviation puts its snack in the Solo Cap BrandbuilderTM paper cup
“The single largest carbon impact for Coca Cola is the packaging, so the single largest carbon reduction opportunity is recycling that packaging”
Sapin wines says: “The MLP concept is extremely interesting for travel retail. A 750ml bottle of wine is so much lighter and is unbreakable which makes it perfect for travelling consumers. Ratcliffe & Brown says that some of its airline customers can save 45 per cent in weight by using wine in PET bottles, and gain 20 per cent space in the bar cart. The company has also developed a plastic capping system instead of aluminium to make the recycling process easier. Purists may
not like it, but it’s not only plastic in the new world of wine onboard. Airlines seeking weight reduction can also have their wine brought
ovenable packaging for easy use in the galley. The lightweight packs, boxes and trays can resist a high heat and make them ideal for baking snacks in a small space. US airlines generate 880 million tonnes of waste of which 75 per cent is recyclable, yet only 20 per cent is actually recycled. Used aluminium cans are worth more than US$1000 a tonne and clear PET more than US$500: Delta’s inflight recycling programme handles over 1000 tonnes of aluminium, paper and plastic waste annually and more than 1 million aluminium cans per month. The environmental Courtauld Commitment
2 Initiative encourages carriers and caterers to go further. It moves away from just looking at the simple packaging and the need to be lightweight, to focus on the sustainable use of resources throughout the product life cycle and the supply chain. It challenges those using raw materials to find sustainable alternatives that don’t compromise functionality or performance. As airlines
become more
aware of their carbon footprint, the ‘thinking
green’ mentality has extended to
their suppliers. Sugarcane fibre
products for example can fit perfectly into an
airline’s overall approach to sustainability. Sugar cane is resistant to water, oil, heat and is non-toxic. The trays
www.onboardhospitality.com
21
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52