From now on, Tetra Pak cartons from all of its plants are able to wear the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) label. Tetra Pak has been given approval to supply Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) labelled packages from anywhere in the world, having received FSC Chain of Custody (CoC) certification for all of its converting plants and market companies. It is now one of FSC’s largest multi-site certifications, covering a total of 92 facilities worldwide.
FSC is an international, non-governmental organisation that promotes responsible management of the world’s forests. Its CoC certification allows wood fibres to be traced at every step through the supply chain, providing assurance that any products bearing the FSC logo support forest management that adopts environmentally appropriate, socially beneficial and economically viable management practices.
“Consumers are increasingly aware of the environmental impact of the products they buy, expecting businesses to help them make better choices. The FSC logo is an easily recognisable hallmark for forest management, and our customers now have an opportunity to demonstrate their support for responsible forestry anywhere in the world,” said Mario Abreu, Vice President Environment at Tetra Pak.
"As a major user of paperboard, we feel it’s our responsibility to do what we can to help improve the management of the world's forests, which is why we are working to ensure 100% of the paperboard we use is certified.”
Tetra Pak introduced the FSC certification system to the liquid food carton industry launching the world’s first FSC labelled carton in 2007. Since then, Tetra Pak has delivered more than 130 billion packages to customers carrying the FSC logo, with 43.7 billion in 2014 alone.
Tetra Pak’s commitment to the environment is an important feature of many brands. One of these is Vita Coco. This is an extract from Vita Coco’s FAQs page:
“Vita Coco produces the freshest tasting coconut water possible by packaging its beverages in Tetra Pak, an eco- and socially-responsible form of packaging based on the use of wood fibre, a sustainable source. Tetra Pak is BPA-free. Tetra Pak helped form the Carton Council, which to date has given one in three households in 39 states carton recycling access. Tetra Pak was also recognized with The Presidential Award for Sustainable Development in 1996. Tetra Pak is committed to making food safer with minimum stress on the environment.”
Vita Coco differentiates itself by its strapline, “Never from concentrate”. The entire production process from tree to Tetra Pack occurs within 72 hours. The fresh taste of Vita Coco, “like drinking from a coconut with a straw,” the company attributes to Tetra Pak, which gives the product a 12 month shelf life with only flash pasteurisation of five seconds at 120 degrees and no preservatives. Vita Coco is packaged in in Tetra Prisma Aseptic 330 ml cartons with DreamCap.
Tetra Pak also packages Zizo, O.N.E, Kero Coco and Chi coconut waters and is seen to be part of coconut water's impact on the beverage market worldwide.
“Tetra Pak discovered this trend early on and has been integral in the way that the category has grown around the world. One way the company has done this is by launching a Coconut Knowledge Centre in Singapore in 2012. This enables Tetra Pak to understand the characteristics of coconut products; provide technical support to customers; develop new recipes; and expand knowledge sharing among its international network of coconut experts,” Tetra Pak stated in its coconut water case study.
