Global Food and beverage company Kraft Heinz announced a new commitment to cut the use of virgin plastic by 20% in its global packaging portfolio, as part of the company’s efforts to reduce its use of fossil fuels and adopt more sustainable packaging options.

The company estimated that achieving its new goal will reduce its use of virgin plastic by approximately 100 million pounds.

In 2020, the company unveiled a series of sustainability commitments, and this new goal expands on its plastic reduction commitments to achieve 100% recyclable, reusable or compostable packaging by 2025, halve greenhouse gas emissions by 2030, and reach net-zero emissions by 2050.

Kraft Heinz highlighted a series of actions aimed at using less plastic, increasing recycled content, and utilizing alternatives to plastic, including recently launching an eco-friendly multipack paperboard sleeve to replace plastic shrink-wrap in the UK, targeting the replacement of 15% of PET rigid plastic packaging in the U.S. with post-consumer recycled content by 2025, and its ongoing project with Pulpex to develop a paper-based bottle made from wood pulp for HEINZ Tomato Ketchup.

Rashida La Lande, Executive Vice President, Global General Counsel, and Chief Sustainability and Corporate Affairs Officer at Kraft Heinz, said:

“To achieve our ESG goals, including to reach net-zero GHG emissions, we can’t continue to do things as we have in the past. We are investing in innovative technologies and partnerships that are critical to helping us redesign packaging, eliminate unnecessary plastic, increase our use of recycled content, and influence the adoption of reuse models.”