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P&G Fabric Care makes plastics reduction commitment

If successful, the reduction in plastic packaging by P&G Fabric Care in Europe by 2025 will be equivalent to one line of detergent bottles around the earth.

Ariel Pods are P&G’s most compacted detergent and require less plastic packaging per wash.
Ariel Pods are P&G’s most compacted detergent and require less plastic packaging per wash.

Procter &Gamble Fabric Care brands, including Ariel, Lenor, and others across Europe, aim to reduce plastics use in their packaging by 30% by 2025. This announcement was made by Virginie Helias, Chief Sustainability Officer at P&G, at the Sustainable Brands Conference held in April. Said Helias, this is a key milestone in reaching the Ariel 2030 Brand Ambition of reinventing a better clean, saving 50% resources by 2030, including virgin plastics.

These planned plastics reductions from Ariel, Lenor, and other P&G Fabric Care brands add up to more than 15,000 tons per year by 2025 versus 2018. Although P&G Fabric Care plastics packaging only makes up a relatively small percentage of the total European plastics waste, the amount of plastics saved every year will be significant—enough to make one line of detergent bottles that circles around the earth.

Says Marcus Gover, Waste and Resources Action Programme (WRAP) CEO, of the announcement, “We’re delighted to see P&G make further commitments to tackling plastic packaging waste. Through The UK Plastics Pact, of which P&G is a founding member, we are working together with business, governments, and citizens to transform the way we make, use, and dispose of plastic—keeping it in the economy and out of the environment.”

Commented Helias, “Our Ariel and Lenor brands are pioneering packaging reduction practices that will be critical to P&G achieving our commitment to reduce virgin plastics in packaging by 50 percent by 2030. This is one of many examples of P&G’s leadership brands innovating to inspire and enable responsible consumption.”

By 2022, P&G Fabric Care Europe aims to make all its brands’ packaging 100% recyclable. Ariel and Lenor are working to increase the demand for recycling by further increasing the use of post-consumer recycled material in their packaging, which today already contains up to 50% PCR.

To take further steps towards circularity, P&G believes the industry should collaborate and promote easy and effective recycling. To help with this, P&G’s scientists are working with the industry on innovative solutions such as PetCore Europe perforated sleeves for better recyclability. These efforts have been recognized by the industry. For example, P&G’s Principal Scientist, Gian De Belder, has been awarded the EU Plastics Recycling Ambassador of the Year Award, recognizing individuals who have made an outstanding contribution to the industry. Ariel also participates in cutting-edge pilot schemes, such as LOOP, which aims to drive circularity with principles such as the ‘milkman refill model.’

Comments Volker Kuhn, Vice President Fabric Care at P&G, “We are always challenging ourselves to grow our business sustainably. Removing 30 percent of plastics across Europe Fabric Care products is a bold move we want to deliver by 2025 at the latest. We are delighted that more and more consumers choose our Ariel Pods which is the most compacted detergent we are offering. Pods require less plastic packaging per wash while supplying the exact amount of detergent needed, thereby avoiding wastage and over-dosing. Addressing the plastics issue is everyone’s responsibility, and we’re determined to drive a step towards circularity, so that no plastic from our brands’ packaging finds its way into the oceans or landfill.”

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