Ambitions
Driving the transition to a circular and low carbon packaging system
Packaging is essential for ensuring the safe delivery of products to consumers, protecting and preserving their quality and reducing food waste. Plastic packaging has especially become the norm for packaging beverages, due to its lightness, strength, convenience and lower energy consumption than glass. However, its widespread use and inadequate end-of-life management have caused significant environmental challenges. That’s why Danone has been dedicated for many years to reducing the use of plastic packaging, improving the circularity of plastics that cannot be eliminated to date, and recovering what is not kept in circulation, as well as collaborating with industry alliances, civil society and governments to develop effective systems to collect, reuse and recycle packaging.
Pioneer in promoting a circular economy for packaging
Danone has been, for more than 30 years, actively promoting a circular approach to packaging. In 1992, we became one of the founding members of France’s first Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) organisation, originally called Eco-emballages and now known as Citeo. In 2008, evian became the first brand to use food-grade recycled PET in France in 2008, helping to popularise the practice. And in 2017, we joined the Ellen MacArthur Foundation’s (EMF) New Plastics Economy initiative, signing the Global Commitment on Plastics to help tackle plastic pollution on a worldwide scale.
Antoine Riboud (Danone) contribue à la création d'Eco-Emballages à la demande du ministre de l'Environnement Brice Lalonde.
Commitments
Our commitments to drive the transition to a circular and low-carbon packaging system
Since then, Danone has been working towards achieving its target in addition to advocating for a collective global transition. In 2023, the Group reinforced this ambition, in its new sustainability strategy, the Danone Impact Journey built on a holistic approach based on 3 strategic pillars to drive the transition to a circular and low-carbon packaging system.
Enhancing recyclability and developing reuse
Achieving fully reusable, recyclable or compostable packaging
We strive to improve the circularity of our packaging by ensuring that materials are kept in the economy and out of nature. Our goal is to make all our packaging 100% reusable, recyclable, or compostable by 2030. This involves redesigning our packaging to ensure that the materials we use can be sorted and recycled in practice, adapting them to existing infrastructures. Danone also continues developing reusable packaging models as our current reusable plastic jugs and glass offer, while participating in cross-industry partnerships to scale reusable models like in France working closely with Citeo.
100%
reusable, recyclable, or compostable packaging by 2030.
Minimizing Our Plastic Footprint
Halving the use of virgin fossil-based packaging
At Danone, we are committed to reducing our plastic usage to minimize our environmental impact. We aim to halve the amount of virgin fossil-based packaging used by 2040 compared to 2020. This involves eliminating unnecessary plastic packaging, optimizing plastic use through packaging design, increasing the use of recycled content and/or replacing plastic with alternative materials like paper.
50%
reduction in the use of virgin fossil-based packaging by 2040, with a 30% reduction by 2030
Co-building and co-financing well-designed, efficient and inclusive collection systems.
Leading the development of effective collection systems to recover as much plastic as we use
By 2040, Danone ambitioned to recover as much plastic as we use to prevent plastic pollution through a collaborative approach with our ecosystem by developing efficient and inclusive collection and recycling systems. This involves paying Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) fees in markets where EPR is legislated and also investing voluntarily in impact funds and private initiatives to combat plastic pollution. In markets that lack sufficient government policies, Danone and Danone Ecosystem have launched inclusive recycling projects to support workers from the collection and recycling sectors, enabling them to work in a safe environment, be compensated and benefit from better social protection.
2040
Lead the development of effective collection systems to recover as much plastic as Danone uses.
