Fresh Berry leading the way with sustainable packaging
Market wholesalers and berry growers, Fresh Berry Co, are leading the way in the war-on-waste with the business now selling many of their lines of berries and snacking tomatoes in fully sustainable, compostable packaging.
As well as being environmentally sustainable, the new packaging offers a point of difference, and many greengrocers see the packaging as a key selling point.
Leon Mugavin from Leaf says his customers have responded positively to the packaging, “Consumer reaction has been very good, customers are becoming more environmentally conscious, and we’re finding the loyalty and repeat sales of these products is fantastic. When I first saw them, I thought what a great idea, our customers are always pushing us to be more environmentally aware.”
While Fresh Berry still has standard plastic packaging available, the compostable packaging offers something different for many greengrocers. The price point for the produce in compostable packaging is slightly higher, the produce is premium quality, and the punnets not only enhance the presentation of the fruit, but they also offer customers a secondary option to collect and compost their scraps or to plant their seedlings.
To date, Fresh Berry is the only Market business offering berries and tomatoes in top seal compostable packaging, and their long term objective is to replace as much plastic as is practicable. Changing purchasing from cheaper overseas plastics is not the easy choice as it comes at a financial cost for Fresh Berry. “The machine to seal the top film was a huge financial investment for us, but we wanted to be forward-thinking in our approach to sustainability,” said Tony Pettinella from Fresh Berry.
Leon agrees that it’s an initiative worth supporting, “We’ve got to support businesses like Fresh Berry, it has come at a cost to them, but they have championed the cause, we need to support people who are prepared to look at things differently.”
In the right consumer market, this new “Earthcycle” packaging, made from responsibly sourced Canadian FSC controlled wood in “OK Compost” certified wood pulp punnets, can allow retailers to enhance their offer to a customer base that is increasingly considering their environmental impact when making buying decisions.
See the compostable packaging for yourself at Fresh Berry Co, Store 117. |
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