A lot of companies across all industries are changing the way they manufacture their products and how they package them. They are making them sustainable and more environmentally friendly. One of the largest companies that are making this move is Nestlé, a food and drink giant.
Nestlé announced early this year that it had committed to issuing 100% recyclable packaging for its candy by 2025. It is a part of their goal that their confectionery branch will be released with new packaging, more specifically KitKat chocolate bars, which will be wrapped in paper instead of the traditional glossy red plastic.
Nestlé Japan is also set to introduce the world's first recyclable paper candy wrappers, and they also plan to use cocoa beans to sweeten their sugar-free chocolates fully. Since they are going to discontinue using plastic, they are encouraging people that the new packaging can help teach origami.
Nestlé Japan started with the changes last month, as they swapped the glossy plastic for a paper variation with their five larger-sized KitKat products. KitKat is also campaigning for the change in packaging that they are urging their customers to turn the bags into paper cranes; they want their customers to learn a new hobby by making origami after eating the sweet treat. By making this change, Nestlé Japan can save up to 380 tons of plastic every year.
Nestlé Switzerland is also going to make the same move in the future. In fact, out of all the Nestlé branches, Switzerland will have the most impact on reducing plastic waste. The drinks alone make $21.7 billion every year, and the switch to an eco-friendly wrapper for KitKat can help save almost 600 tons of plastic every year.
With the ongoing battle with plastic waste that is poisoning our water, it is a great decision to minimize the usage of it, especially if it comes from a large company like Nestlé. Even though plastics can be recycled, only 10% of them are recycled properly, while the rest are either dumped in the landfill or in the ocean.
As we are ditching plastic to a better alternative, companies like Nestlé can help encourage other companies to do the same. KitKat chocolates sell around 4 million products in a day, and that is in Japan alone. The packaging is considered as single-use plastic. Once the change happens, around 2 million tons of plastic can be eliminated every year around the world.
