Charoen Pokphand Foods Public Company Limited (CP Foods) applies 3R approach; Reduce, Reuse, and Recycle, in packaging design for its PET plastic with 80% recycled plastic to reduce virgin plastic packaging footprint and subsequently mitigate plastic waste problem. Currently, CP Foods’s all egg packaging are 100% recyclable.                        

The move is in line with the company’s sustainability goal that all of CP Foods’ plastic packages worldwide must be reusable or recyclable or upcycle or compostable by 2030.

CP Foods' Assistant Vice-President Kitti Wangwiwatsilp says the company has applies “Design for Recycling” guidelines to ensure the circular transition of its plastic packaging. He explained that CP Foods’ egg trays are thoughtfully designed based on 3R approach, “Reduce, Reuse, and Recycle”.  He added that the sustainable egg tray is one of many initiatives. So far, 99.9% of CP Foods plastic food packaging can be Reusable, Recyclable, Upcyclable or Compostable.

Under this concept, CP Foods is taking an action to reduce the use of virgin plastics. This can be done by increasing the proportion of recycled materials in egg packaging without compromising on food quality and safety, Also, the company supports the reuse of packaging and making recyclability one of the key design considerations. As a result, CP Foods’ egg packages are designed to allow users ease to recycle.

“Due to continuous effort, 80% of the plastic packaging used for our egg products is made of recycled plastic. We only use 20% of virgin plastic material for food safety reasons. Our recycled materials have been tested and verified by a laboratory of a trustable third-party. This ensures that the plastic material used in the production of egg packaging is safe and does not affect the quality of the food,” Mr. Kitti said.

In 2021, the recycled content help CP Foods to reduce the use of virgin plastic for its egg tray by 373 tons, enable the company to reduce CO2 emission 583 tons CO2e per year. This can be compared to switching off 65 million of 15w LED lights for an hour. Asides, the company is switching to alternative materials such as recycled paper. Packaging of the 30-Egg Tray and premium egg products such as CP Cage Free Selection and CP Omega Egg Pack 4 and Pack 10 are made from 100% recycled paper.

In the previous year, CP Foods could reduce paper use by 889 tons and plastic materials by 672 tons. The company continues to study and collaborate with partners to develop innovative packaging that is environmentally friendly to achieve the goal of reducing the use of plastic and paper in food packaging totaling 1,000 tons in 2025.