CASE STUDY No. 9635
KEY WORDS FOOD WRAP, ICE CREAM POPSICLES
Ben & Jerry's Homemade, Inc.
30 Technology Park
South Burlington, VT 05403
Contact: Michael Brink, Marketing. Tel: 802-651-9600, ext. 7670.
Andrea Asch, Environmental Manager. Tel: 802-651-9600, ext. 7613.
Summary
A two-piece retail package consisting of inner wrapper and outer box is replaced by a one-piece, plastic film wrapper, eliminating 11 million boxes and reducing waste by 165 tons.
Action
In 1987, Ben & Jerry's introduced the Peace Pop, a 3.7-ounce ice cream popsicle. The original packaging consisted of two layers--a poly coated paper wrapper enclosing the frozen product, and an outer carton, used primarily because it provided space for advertising. 24 individual popsicles were packed in a display container, and then in a corrugated shipper.
Ben Cohen and employees from marketing, manufacturing, and sales assembled to evaluate packaging of the Peace Pop, taking into account these factors:
Alternative new wrappers ranging from paper to plastic film were tested. Recyclable paper was evaluated but failed to pass tests simulating the strains of shipping and market display. A heat-sealed, oriented polypropylene wrapper often used in the ice cream market was not strong enough for the Ben & Jerry's 3.7-ounce product.
The wrapper finally selected was a 48-guage, 1-1/2 mil opaque sheet of polyester and Surlyn ionomer (DuPont), printed by Printpack, Inc., of Atlanta (800-241-9984). Like many composite plastics, the new Peace Pop wrapper is generally not recyclable.
Payback
Ben & Jerry's packaging change was not motivated by cost reduction but source reduction. But in fact, savings resulting from elimination of the outer carton were balanced by upgrading to a more expensive single wrapper. Cost-wise, it was a wash.
Benefits
The new Peace Pop wrapper weighs less than the old two-piece package and requires less energy to produce. Based on projected annual sales of the Peace Pop, Ben & Jerry's calculates that this packaging change eliminates the disposal of 11 million popsicle boxes weighing a total 165 tons. In addition, packing at the ice cream factory has been simplified by elimination of the automated boxer previously required to pack popsicle cartons. Now, the wrapped popsicle is fed directly into a shipper which serves double duty as a display case. Ben & Jerry's also saves by: