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Beverage giant Lion has created a recycled bar at the Melbourne Cup Carnival to launch its Quincy sparkling alcoholic seltzer.

Made of 98 per cent recycled plastic, and featuring furniture created from post-industrial and post-consumer plastic such as car bumpers and plastic bags, the Round II bar is an Australian first and will be used at many of the company’s key sponsorship events, says Libby Davidson, head of sustainability at Lion.

“The impact of single-use plastics on the environment is a key concern at Lion so we are always looking for new, innovative ways to repurpose this resource and promote the circular economy.

“The concept was developed by a group of our own people from different teams across the business during a lunchtime sustainability hackathon. Not only does this reinforce the power of diversity, it’s also a great example of what a company can achieve if you empower your people to share ideas and really make a difference beyond the bottom line,” she said.

The initiative is part of a celebration of Lion’s partnership with soft plastic recycling organisation REDcycle and its manufacturer Replas, announced in September. REDcycle collects and reuses soft plastics that cannot be collected at kerbside, and Replas turns it into a range of recycled plastic products such as street signage and park furniture.

Food & Drink Business

Select Harvests has appointed Kristina Hermanson as the company’s new managing director and CEO, effective from 3 August. She takes over from David Surveyor, who has been in the role since February 2023, and will finish on 31 July.

Lactalis Australia has paid $59,400 in penalties after the ACCC issued it with three infringement notices for alleged misleading labelling – the latest in a string of food companies to be hit with penalties over the past two months.

Across Australia and internationally, food and beverage businesses are facing growing pressure to provide greater transparency about where products come from, how they are produced, and whether claims relating to quality, sustainability, and authenticity can be verified. Griffith University Asia Institute associate professor of agribusiness and international trade, Robin E. Roberts, offers advice for companies to transform this pressure into a competitive advantage.