Case Study Cerebos Australia – 2016 Outstanding Achievement in Design

Case

Study

Cerebos Australia - 2016 Outstanding Achievement in Design Case Study Cerebos Australia – 2016 Outstanding Achievement in Design

Overview

In 2016, Cerebos Australia won the Australian Packaging Covenant award for Outstanding Achievement in Design. This award recognises the organisation’s success in integrating the Sustainable Packaging Guidelines (SPGs) into their design and procurement processes, and implementing the opportunities identified.

Taking advantage of an extensive factory modernisation, the Cerebos design team has been able to use the outcomes of the SPG reviews to redesign and rethink packaging as production lines were upgraded. A consistently high performing signatory, Cerebos also works actively with its supply chain to identify and implement design changes.

Background Cerebos Australia Cerebos is a successful and innovative sauce, spice and coffee manufacturing organisation that develop and manufacture their own products across both Australia and New Zealand. They have a wide range of well- known brands including Fountain, Gravox, Saxa and Gregg’s. Cerebos Australia and New Zealand is a trans- Tasman integration of two companies. The parent company, Cerebos Pacific Limited, is based in Singapore and is wholly owned by Suntory Limited, a Japanese global food and beverage group.

Commitment to Sustainable Design Since joining the Covenant in mid-2000, Cerebos has progressively improved its packaging decision-making processes in order to reduce environmental impacts and create business efficiencies.

Cerebos has an ongoing commitment to minimise the environmental impact arising from packaging by continuing to pursue their specific performance goals of Design, Recycling and Product Stewardship. Environmental issues are considered in the product development process through a packaging decision checklist based on the SPGs. This checklist is referred to during the evaluation process for all new products to look for improvement opportunities. It requires business sign-off and is communicated to the executive management team at each project approval meeting.

The entire Cerebos product range had been assessed against the SPGs by the end of 2014. Case Study Cerebos Australia – 2016 Outstanding Achievement in Design

This process, central to all signatories’ Covenant commitments, helped Cerebos to identify and evaluate a long list of opportunities. Several of these were implemented in 2015, achieving significant environmental and business outcomes.

Cerebos continues to show that a well-planned packaging assessment process, combined with smart design, leads to vastly more efficient packaging and drives cost savings and environmental improvements.

Design Achievements in 2016 Design optimisation

Through the SPGs assessment, the Cerebos packaging design team identified the potential for a more material efficient handle design for their two litre bulk bottle. In 2015 this change was implemented, reducing the weight of each bottle from 90g to 85g (see picture right) . Being one of Cerebos’ largest volume products, this change will save 20 tonnes of HDPE each year.

Since 2013, Cerebos has been gradually converting the labels for its 500ml squeeze bottles to a more efficient, lighter weight material. The last step in this process, removal of the polyethylene (PE) laminate from the entire range, was completed in 2015. In total, all of these label changes will save more than 20 tonnes of material per year. Previously, the labels had been changed from PVC to polyethylene to reduce material complexity and enhance the recyclability of the bottles.

Through the SPGs assessment process, Cerebos had also identified an opportunity to improve the efficiency of its yeast sachets. As part of a production line upgrade project in 2015, they took the opportunity to redesign the primary and secondary packaging for their 35g and 84g sachets.

This included: • For the primary packaging (sachet): moving from a blank size of 180 x 91 millimetres to a blank of 170 x 74 millimetres, allowed Cerebos to reduce more than 30 per cent of the multi-layer rewind material. Based on 2015 sales, this will result in an annual saving of 641 kg per year.

• For the secondary packaging (folding carton): Cerebos converted the 2-fold carton to a seal end. This had an impact on the blank size (material reduction of 22%) and allowed them to save more than a tonne of carton board annually.

Pallet utilisation

In 2015, Cerebos implemented three new wrap-around case packers in their factory (catering line, yeast line and dry-mix line). This provided an opportunity to rethink and redesign their pallet pattern for these products, achieving significant environmental and business improvements. A recent line upgrade offers significant improvements. Case Study Cerebos Australia – 2016 Outstanding Achievement in Design

Improved pallet efficiency for just one line will result in approximately 1,133 less pallets in rotation each year. Similar changes will be introduced for other ranges in 2016, reducing the number of truck movements and associated fuel consumption and air emissions. Supplier engagement Environmental discussions take place as part of the formal review with strategic suppliers (monthly or quarterly), and progress is tracked. In 2015, this strategic process helped to identify several opportunities to work with key suppliers. These were being trialled in 2016, and included:

• Further light-weighting the two and four litre bottle designs; • Removing the unnecessary layer of PE laminate from labels on the two and four litre bottles; and • Shipper redesigns that will further improve pallet utilisation. Improving recyclability

Since 2010, Cerebos has been working towards increasing the percentage of its packaging that is recyclable - making it easier for consumers to close the loop at end of life. Between 2010 and 2015 the percentage of recyclable packaging increased from 81% to 83%.

Cerebos is also committed to ensuring that consumers have appropriate recycling information relating to that packaging. 100% of the company’s new and redesigned packaging includes appropriate recyclability or disposal symbols in accordance with Cerebos’ labelling strategy.

Having attended the launch of Planet Ark’s Australian Recycling Label, Cerebos is also considering a future transition to a labelling program. Timings are still to be confirmed. Buying recycled

Since 2011, Cerebos has had a policy to buy recycled packaging and targets to actively increase the percentage of recycled material purchased and preference packaging purchases from Covenant supply chain partners. Despite the restrictions of food grade material requirements, nearly 5000 tonnes (more than 70%) of the packaging Cerebos purchased in 2015 has recycled content.

For more information about Cerebos’ sustainable packaging initiatives, please visit the APCO website and read their annual report. Case Study Cerebos Australia – 2016 Outstanding Achievement in Design

Disclaimer

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