Ice cream in the Ocean
- Hongrui He (Ari)
- Nov 28, 2021
- 2 min read
Updated: Nov 29, 2021
Do you know that our world produces more than 380 million tons of plastic each year, of which as much as 50% is used for one-time but it can exist on the earth for at least hundreds of years, and the fate of these plastic wastes-there are more than 10 million tons of plastic each year dumped into the ocean. The main reason for the large-scale use of plastics is that it’s inexpensive and versatile, and their characteristics make them ideal for many applications. However, these qualities also make it an environmental problem.
We have developed a "disposable" lifestyle.
Hanneke Faber, President of Unilever Foods & Refreshments, said at a media briefing held by the United Nations Environment Programme in early March that according to Unilever's sales data, more than 1.2 million Cremissimo Chocolate Hero bathtubs have been sold so far. Packaging is the largest end-use segment of plastics, accounting for more than 40% of total plastic usage. Unilever also published the amount of plastic they use each year. In 2020, they used a total of 690,000 metric tonnes of plastic. The inestimable plastic waste caused by the huge sales of ice cream packaging will endanger the marine ecology and the entire ecosystem in an indegradable form.
Nowadays, more and more consumers are taking environmental protection into their consideration criteria when choosing a brand. In addition to correct recycling after purchasing, producers should also take responsibility for these terrifyingly large numbers.
Unilever and Magnum have already begun to explore the path of sustainable development long time ago.
In 2010, Unilever formulated a Sustainable Living Plan with a ten-year period to plan strategies and roads for environmental protection and sustainable development in the next ten years.
And they are fulfilling their promises.
Unilever launched the #GetPlasticWise campaign in the UK in 2019. The goal was to make its plastic packaging completely reusable, recyclable or compostable by 2025. In the same year, Magnum became the first ice cream brand to pioneer a new recycling technology and the first to use recycled plastic in the production and packaging of ice cream. From the end of 2020, all Magnum Pints tubs in Europe will be produced with rPP, which means It will use more than 160,000 kilograms of recycled plastic.
Since rPP produced by traditional mechanical recycling methods is not suitable for the use of food packaging, Unilever collaborated with SABIC, a global leader in diversified chemicals, to use an innovative recycling process to convert plastic waste into resin with the same characteristics as the original food -grade resin.
Magnum has printed this logo on all products that use recycled plastic packaging.
Unfortunately, not all countries can fully support Magnum's recycling system, for example the process infrastructure in UK/IE does not currently support the recycling of their wrappers, and France dosen’t support the recycling of their plastic bags.
Obviously, Unilever and Magnum still have a long way to go in terms of sustainable development, and they need to constantly look for new strategies and innovations.
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