• Business Business

Beloved chocolate brand announces major change to its products: 'Really impressive'

It helps solve a serious problem.

Walker's Chocolates has switched from plastic packaging to paper with a water-soluble coating.

Photo Credit: iStock

A major British chocolatier has made a welcome change to its wrapping, according to ThePackHub

Walkers Chocolates has switched from plastic packaging to paper with a water-soluble coating. This new packaging should help keep the sweets fresh while being kinder to the environment downstream. It's also designed to work with municipal recycling. 

Walkers has undertaken a range of sustainability efforts, including certified cocoa sourcing, recycling manufacturing waste, and adopting solar power. The chocolatier has set long-term goals of providing carbon offsets for delivery emissions and making its shipping packages recyclable or compostable. 

Plastic waste is a massive problem, requiring manufacturers to step up with better alternatives like Walkers is offering. 

Plastic poses a safety hazard to wildlife, and it can trickle into human food streams too. As wrappers break down into particles, they can bioaccumulate in fish and other animals. When ingested, microplastics can increase risks of digestive, endocrine, renal, circulatory, immune, neurological, and reproductive health problems.  

Plastic use also relies heavily on oil. Oil production generates a lot of atmospheric pollution, which in turn exacerbates destructive weather patterns like droughts, heat waves, and floods. Those include a wide host of housing, agricultural, and ecological costs. 

FROM OUR PARTNER

Find the best HVAC solution to heat and cool your home more efficiently

Mitsubishi Electric’s efficient heating and cooling HVAC solutions can help you stay comfortable no matter the weather or region. You can even regulate temperatures in each room with individually controlled all-electric heat pump systems.

With an energy-efficient, all-climate system from Mitsubishi, you can reduce the amount of energy needed to heat and cool your home, receive up to $2,000 in tax credits, and get peace of mind knowing you’re choosing rigorously tested, high-quality products.

Reducing plastic use is an easy way to avoid all of these negative consequences. Many in the food industry are taking measures to minimize their plastic use when possible. 

Walkers was quite impressed with the work of its new packaging partner. Switching over to a more sustainable packaging solution turned out to be an easy transition. 

"The printability of UPM Solide Lucent is really impressive and EvoPak's RCM coating is a revolutionary solution for our industry," said Walkers Chocolates Commercial Director Tom Murtagh in a UPM press release. "We've achieved the same packaging line efficiency, maintaining the same speed as our previous plastic packaging materials with only minor adjustments."  

Should companies be required to help recycle their own products?

Definitely 👍

No way 👎

It depends on the product 🤔

They should get tax breaks instead 💰

Click your choice to see results and speak your mind.

Join our free newsletter for good news and useful tips, and don't miss this cool list of easy ways to help yourself while helping the planet.

Cool Divider