96% Post-Consumer Bottles Made From Used Milk Jugs Set New Industry Standard
Published 11-19-10
Submitted by Seventh Generation
If you ever wondered what happened to the millions of plastic milk jugs that get tossed into the recycling bin every day, wonder no more. Increasingly, those bottles may be finding their way back into your home, housing Seventh Generation's environmentally-friendly dish liquid, fabric softener, non-chlorine bleach and liquid laundry detergent.
In a landmark achievement, Seventh Generation, the nation's top brand of non-toxic household and personal care products, debuted innovative new packaging featuring 96% post-consumer recycled (PCR) content. Developed by Seventh Generation in collaboration with its packaging partner, Consolidated Container Company, the new packaging is constructed of resin derived from recycled milk jugs and other plastic bottles and represents a quantum leap over the 25% recycled content typically found in plastic packaging.
"For many years we've bemoaned the fact that our products were great for the Earth, but our packaging really wasn't," says Seventh Generation Director of Global Strategic Sourcing Peter Swaine. "It took a while to engineer, but we've proven to a skeptical industry that you can make a bottle that meets both high performance and top environmental standards."
The new packaging, featured in the brand's Dish Liquid and Fabric Softener, joins other impressive high-PCR content bottles in Seventh Generation's roster of products, including its revolutionary 80% PCR 150 oz. Concentrated Laundry Liquid container. These bottles are made from HDPE (#2) plastic instead of PETE (#1) because manufacturing HPDE resin produces 42% less greenhouse gas emissions than PETE. The benefits of this switch are enormous: If every household replaced just one virgin plastic 25 oz. bottle of dish liquid with Seventh Generation's 96% PCR bottle, America would save over 8,600,000 lbs of plastic and prevent the release of more than 23,500,000 lbs of greenhouse gases.
"Consolidated Container Company is extremely excited to be working with Seventh Generation to create this industry leading, high-PCR content package for household cleaning products. We welcomed the challenge from Seventh Generation to develop a package that would meet their tough performance and environmental standards. With our design, engineering, and materials expertise, we've been able to develop this family of packages that will have a dramatic, positive impact on the packaging industry as well as the environment," said Paul Newell, Consolidated's Vice President of Market Development & Innovation.
To learn more about Seventh Generations groundbreaking packaging and the process used to create it, check out the video from "Packaging Pete" at http://www.seventhgeneration.com/learn/blog/how-packaging-pete-turns-milk-containers-bottles-seventh-generation-dish-liquid.
About Seventh Generation
Seventh Generation is committed to being the most trusted brand of household and personal-care products for your living home. Our products are healthy solutions for the air, surfaces, fabrics, pets and people within your home -- and for the community and environment outside of it. Seventh Generation also offers baby products that are safe for your children and the planet.
The company derives its name from the Great Law of the Iroquois Confederacy that states, "In our every deliberation, we must consider the impact of our decisions on the next seven generations." Every time you use a Seventh Generation product you are making a difference by saving natural resources, reducing pollution, and making the world a better place for this and the next seven generations.
For information on Seventh Generation cleaning, paper, baby and feminine personal care products, to find store locations, and explore the company's website visit www.seventhgeneration.com. To read the Seventh Generation 2009 Corporate Consciousness Report, visit http://www.7genreport.com/.
About Consolidated Container Company
Consolidated Container Company is a leading developer and manufacturer of rigid plastic packaging, serving a diverse customer base in the dairy, water, beverage, food, household chemical, automotive, and industrial chemical markets. We design, produce, and deliver more than five billion bottles annually that touch the lives of millions of people each and every day.
CCC owns and operates manufacturing facilities across North America providing standard and custom packaging solutions to our customers through a diverse network of facilities and technology platforms. From our state-of-the-art Panella Engineering and Development Center to our team of manufacturing associates, CCC delivers high-performance, cost-effective design solutions to meet even the most challenging container applications. For more information on Consolidated Container Company, visit www.cccllc.com.
Seventh Generation is committed to becoming the world's most trusted brand of authentic, safe, and environmentally-responsible products for a healthy home. For 20 years, the Burlington, Vermont-based company has been at the forefront of a cultural change in consumer behavior and business ethics.
The company derives its name from the Great Law of the Iroquois that states, "In our every deliberation, we must consider the impact of our decisions on the next seven generations." Every time you use a Seventh Generation product you are making a difference by saving natural resources, reducing pollution, keeping toxic chemicals out of the environment and making the world a safer place for this and the next seven generations.
Seventh Generation products can be found by visiting: www.seventhgeneration.com.
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