This article was republished from Convenience and Impulse Retailing, written by Deborah Jackson

The Ferrero Group has unveiled a new eco-designed box for its Ferrero Rocher range that will begin a global phased rollout from this month.

The announcement comes as part of Ferrero’s commitment to making 100 per cent of its packaging reusable, recyclable or compostable by 2025.

The phased rollout of the new eco-designed boxes will begin with Ferrero’s best-selling products; the Ferrero Rocher 30-piece, which will arrive in Australia and New Zealand before Christmas 2021, and the 16-piece, which will be on local shelves in 2022.

The new Ferrero Rocher eco-designed boxes will be made from polypropylene (PP), which enables easier recycling globally. In addition to being easier to recycle, the innovation will reduce the use of plastic and the impact on the climate. The new boxes use 40 per cent less plastic for the 16-piece and 38 per cent less plastic for the 30-piece.

Ferrero Rocher will save around 2,000 tonnes of plastics globally in the first year from introduction of the eco-designed boxes in September 2021. Once the implementation of the new packaging is complete across the entire Ferrero Rocher box portfolio, the full impact of the project is estimated at approximately 10,000 tonnes less plastic used.

The new 16-piece and 30-piece boxes also have at least 30 per cent lower carbon footprint. Additionally, when a box is recycled, it has an even lower climate impact – reaching a 70 per cent lower carbon footprint versus the previous box.

To create the new box, the R&D team at Ferrero worked to develop and trial more than 29 different plastic resins working with leading materials expert – Miliken.

Fabio Mora, Global Packaging Director, The Ferrero Group, said: “The Ferrero Rocher eco-designed box is a clear example of our dedication to enhancing packaging circularity. We worked in close partnership with Milliken who brought their innovative and critical thinking to help reduce the environmental impact through the use of a new polypropylene material for the Ferrero Rocher box.”

The new eco-designed Ferrero Rocher box is an important first step on the brand’s journey towards more sustainable packaging. All box formats and packaging components will evolve towards more sustainable packaging by 2025, in accordance with the Ferrero company commitment.