Food and beverage giant Nestlé announced today that it is testing out the introduction of paper packaging for its KitKat chocolate brand, with the launch of a pilot in Australia.

Under the new initiative, Nestlé will produce more than 250,000 KitKat bars wrapped in recyclable paper packaging, in an exclusive partnership with Coles. The paper-wrapped bars will be available across Western Australia, South Australia and Northern Territory, and will feature a QR code, enabling consumers to provide feedback.

According to the company, the pilot project forms part of its efforts to address the sustainability of its packaging. Nestlé has committed to make 100% of its packaging recyclable or reusable, and to reduce the use of virgin plastics by a third by 2025, with initiatives to use less plastic, utilize recycled plastic and explore alternatives to plastic packaging.

The company has also pledged to achieve carbon neutrality for the KitKat brand by 2025, through efforts aimed at reducing the emissions impact of its ingredients, manufacturing, and distribution.

The paper for the new packaging was adapted and tested at Nestlé’s Confectionery Research and Development Center in York, UK.

Louise Barrett, Head of the Nestlé Confectionery Product Technology Centre in York, said:

“We are exploring different types of alternative packaging solutions for our confectionary products. For KitKat, the challenge was to find the right paper packaging solution with a high level of barrier properties to adequately protect the chocolate. We had to maintain the perfect balance between the iconic crispy wafer and smooth chocolate that people know and love, whilst at the same time ensuring the packaging is recyclable in the paper stream.”