In the joint circular economy pilot carried out by K Group, Paulig and Globe Hope, coffee packages are collected from June until the end of year in the K Supermarkets in Nummela, Lohja Lempola, Karkkila, Vihti and Veikkola. Globe Hope will use the packages in manufacturing recycled products, which will be on sale in the participating K Supermarkets as well as the online stores of Paulig and Globe Hope.
The use of recycled materials in coffee packages is on the increase
“We are very excited about the recycling campaign because, just like K Group and Globe Hope, we are putting great emphasis on the circular economy. We are the first coffee business in the world that has introduced renewable raw materials in vacuum packaging and we are constantly increasing the use of recycled materials in all our coffee packages. At the moment, the raw materials in many of Paulig’s coffee packages are over 50 percent renewable, which reduces the carbon footprint of the package by approximately one third. Our goal is to have all of our coffee packages made from 100% renewable, plant-based, non-fossil materials by 2025,” says Kati Randell, Senior Manager for Strategic Packaging Development at Paulig.
“Besides developing our packaging, we are paying close attention to sustainability throughout our product chain. We are one of the first large roasteries in the world to source all our coffee through verified sustainable providers: we exclusively use Fairtrade, certified organic or UTZ certified coffee as well as coffee sourced through verified sustainable partnership programmes. We roast all our coffee with biogas in Finland and we actively encourage coffee drinkers to adopt climate-friendly practices in their home kitchens.”
“As the most sustainable retailing business in the world, K Group constantly develops and introduces new ways of promoting the circular economy, both within our own operations and in the daily lives of our customers. Finns are the biggest coffee drinkers in the world and the coffee package recycling collaboration that we are now part of is a prime example of an innovative circular economy pilot that really involves our customers as well,” says Timo Jäske, Sustainability Manager for K Group grocery trade.
“This unique and probably the first ever centralised coffee package recycling project is a great opportunity for us to put our 16 years of recycling design experience into use. This pilot will produce a superb concept,” says Seija Lukkala, CEO of Globe Hope.
The circular economy pilot can be followed on social media using the hashtags #kahvipakkauksenuusielämä and #kahvipakkauskiertoon. All empty Paulig coffee packages can be recycled through the campaign collection containers and normal plastic recycling or, if no plastic recycling is available, as normal mixed waste, which will be used in energy production.
