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Kids' organic oats get plantable, compostable packaging

Packaging for instant cereal products for children includes compostable single-serve cups for convenience and a carton insert embedded vegetable seeds for a hands-on activity.

Pw 52655 Mighty Oats Group


Like children’s building blocks in vibrant primary colors of green, blue, and red, the square paperboard cartons for new Mighty Oats instant cereal for kids contain compostable serving cups and a plantable inner carton liner that speak to the environmental consciousness of parent company Little Duck Organics. Introducing its Tiny Fruits 100% fruit snacks “for kiddos 1 year+” (according to on-pack copy) in 2010, Brooklyn-based Little Duck launched three varieties of Mighty Oats in March 2013 in Whole Foods Market as part of its goal to grow as an organic children’s snack and cereal brand.

Aimed at kids aged four months old and up, Mighty Oats varieties are made from ancient grains, fruits, and spices, like cinnamon and vanilla, and contain no added salts, sugars, colors, or preservatives. The instant oats can be made on the go, by adding warm milk or water to the single-serve cup and waiting 60 seconds. “For Mighty Oats, we prioritized convenience when it came to the packaging, since there weren’t very many options for on-the-go parents when it came to baby cereal; everything was packaged in larger containers,” explains Little Duck director of communications Gillian S. Grefé.

“With that said,” she continues, “it seemed wasteful to have each single-serve cup be thrown out, so we decided to make the cup compostable.” The 3-in.-wide x 2-in.-deep cup is made from what Grefé describes as a coconut shell powder/corn blend, “a plant starch-based plastic resin with a coconut shell powder inclusion for improved rigidity,” from a proprietary supplier.

The material construction of the cup was chosen to provide an adequate moisture and vapor barrier for the cereal product stored inside, while being durable enough to hold up through filling and distribution. The cup is certified under ASTM-6400 as being compostable in municipal and industrial aerobic composting facilities.

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