Mars New Zealand has announced a major step forward in its sustainability journey by committing its Mars, Snickers and Milky Way chocolate bars to new paper-based wrappers. It is a world first for the company that will be rolled out in June 2023 and can be recycled in traditional kerbside recycling bins. The fun-sized bars will be available in paper-based wrappers from 2024.
The new packaging is a result of extensive research and development trials, locally driven from Mars Wrigley’s manufacturing site in Ballarat, Australia.
“The transition to paper-based packaging for our Australian-made chocolate bars marks a significant milestone in our sustainability journey,” said Peter Simmons, General Manager of Mars New Zealand.
“As one of the largest pet food, food, and snacks and treats suppliers in New Zealand, Mars has a responsibility to reduce our environmental footprint right across our business, including packaging. The launch of this new paper-based packaging is a significant step for us towards our local and global packaging targets.”
“We recognise the need to make changes to all our product packaging so it can be recycled across New Zealand. For example, over 90 percent of our food portfolio packaging is already recyclable in many regions, and this percentage will increase once the infrastructure becomes available. We also know that driving meaningful change takes time, and we are proud to be taking these steps toward our 2025 commitments.”
“We are focused on finding the right solution for each of our products; this includes exploring a wide range of recyclable materials to ensure we maintain the high quality and freshness of our products whilst choosing a material that can be easily recyclable by our consumers and in line with local recycling infrastructure. We are committed to working with industry and other partners to make recycling simpler and more accessible for New Zealand consumers and doing what we can to ensure we have the right infrastructure in place to achieve this.”
The packaging is part of the company’s commitment to its $1 billion Sustainable in a Generation Plan. Mars NZ is a signatory of the New Zealand Plastic Packaging Declaration and of the ANZPAC Plastics Pact, reflecting the company’s commitment to using 100 per cent reusable, recyclable, or compostable packaging by 2025 or earlier. Mars is also part of The Global Commitment, led by the Ellen MacArthur Foundation in collaboration with the UN Environment Programme, with a common vision of a circular economy for plastics.
