As part of Arrowhead brand’s commitment to environmental stewardship in California, the company will be expanding its use of recycled content to many of its most popular sized bottles for its 100% Mountain Spring Water by the end of 2016. This will increase Arrowhead’s use of recycled content by 38% and will ensure that most of its bottle sizes—with the exception of its 3- and 5-gal reusable containers—contain up to 50% recycled PET.
“Arrowhead has been part of California history for more than a century. We are continuously evolving our products to have the smallest environmental footprint possible. Thanks to California’s strong commitment to recycling, there is high-quality rPET available, enabling us to increase our use of recycled material,” says Tim Brown, CEO and President of Nestlé Waters North America, which operates the Arrowhead brand.
The announcement is an extension of the brand’s ongoing efforts to support recycling in California. Arrowhead began using 0.5-L rPET bottles three years ago.
“Using recycled content, plastic products and other materials are converted back into new bottles,” says Dave Thorpe, Supply Chain Director for the Arrowhead brand. “In this ‘closed loop’ model, recycled packaging can be reused indefinitely and can help foster a circular economy that prioritizes sustainability.”
Arrowhead is partnering with Los Angeles-based CarbonLITE Industries LLC, a producer of food-grade, post-consumer recycled PET, to provide the rPET material used in its bottles. The recycled materials are primarily collected in California.
“California’s recycling program leads the nation, recovering billions of plastic containers each year,” says Leon Farahnik, founder and CEO of CarbonLITE. “By reusing these materials, Arrowhead will save 20,000 tons of carbon dioxide from production annually. That’s a significant reduction in greenhouse gases and a model for other packaging companies.”
