Today is an inspiring day here at Stonyfield. Today is the day Stonyfield is launching new breakthrough packaging for our multipack cups –packaging made from plants.
Packaging that looks, feels, and yes, sounds, exactly the same as the old packaging, yet is utterly – and environmentally – different. Packaging that takes an important step toward making sure we leave a healthier planet for future generations. Packaging that slashes greenhouse gas emissions by 48 percent, reduces the total global warming impact of Stonyfield by 9 percent, and raises the bar on new standards for sustainable packaging and the use of bio-plastics.
It’s packaging you can feel as good about as the organic yogurt inside.
The cup itself is exciting on its own. But when you look deeper, at the complete story of how Stonyfield got to this day – the journey from conception to cornfield to cup – the packaging change becomes something bigger. Something really worth shouting from the rooftops (or chirping about on your Twitter account).
“I’ve been at Stonyfield for almost twenty years working on sustainability, and it’s very rare that we have an opportunity to really make a giant leap forward towards that new green economy getting off of oil,” Nancy Hirshberg, our VP of Natural Resources says. “So this project for me has been so personally fulfilling. It’s involved everyone from all over our company, from R&D and engineering, and purchasing, and marketing and natural resources to come together to really innovate and to do something that’s new, that really gets us beyond just using less stuff and onto the new materials of the future.”
The move to PLA (polylactic acid) from polystyrene has been a long time in the making. It’s been an involved process combining the passion and knowledge of an extremely dedicated group led by the vision of our CE-Yo Gary Hirshberg. There’ve been many twists and turns, lots of setbacks along the way, some moments when it looked impossible and an incredible amount of learning, too. And never a thought of turning back.
“There has never been a more urgent moment for all of us to recognize what we are doing to this one planet we call home,” shares Gary Hirshberg. “The great thing is that we can still turn things around and realize this incredible opportunity we have to build a sustainable economy where all of us win—consumers, industry and our childrens’ children. “
Sharing what we’ve learned with others, in fact, has been – and continues to be – an essential part of this journey. We’ve been talking with experts about the move to PLA, discussing the impacts and concerns that accompany the change. Key leaders in fields ranging from recycling to GMOs to children’s health have provided key insights to this initiative.
What a response! Michelle Mauthe Harvey of the Environmental Defense Fund said, “Stonyfield appears to understand both the potential and the complexities of these new materials and have done an admirable job of due diligence. It is a great next step.” And David Levine, executive director and co-founder of the American Sustainable Business Council said, “This bold move by Stonyfield forges new ground to advance the use of sustainable biomaterials as a pathway to new economic, social, and environmental benefits.”
FOOD Inc’s director Robby Kenner agrees. “I appreciate Stonyfield’s search for something sustainable and better, rather than waiting for something perfect,” he says. “In the world of sustainability, it’s all a matter of weighing issues.”
We weighed them, and decided to go radical: We’re open sourcing everything we’ve learned on this journey. We’re inviting others to join us and hoping they do. Really. (hear Gary say it himself in the video…)
If all dairy companies in the United States follow suit and replace their polystyrene containers with plant-based plastics, carbon dioxide emissions can be reduced by 671,234 metric tons a year. That’s equal to the emissions from 1.5 million barrels of oil – or the energy use for 57,000 homes for one year.
Wow. What an impact. And what an ultimate goal to work toward. If our story in the near future could become: from cornfield to cup to complete industry change, then I’d remember today as more than just inspiring…I’d remember it as the day we inspired a revolution. That’s what I call a worthy and wonderful Wednesday.
What do you think?
See the road we’ve traveled from cornfield to cup and learn more at www.stonyfield.com/madefromplants.
Regardless of Cargill’s history and GMO….you must support move from evil plastic to biodegradable plastic. If you support the industry as a whole, you can also support other smaller companies that
have good values like Cereplast, CERP. I support their products. They mix PLA in but pursue other contents. I think their goal is to not need PLA.
Thanks for the information it was helpful
I love this post.
[...] From Cornfield to Cup – a New Sustainable Packaging Journey … [...]
Cool article. Very interesting.
I currently have a baby that eats your yogurth.
My concern is about the new package. In our society, it is still going through the landfill after all and it will not disappear. Since you need a compostable location (which does not exist around). PLA coming from corn is a BIG concern that you are taking food from the people. How many corns you need to produce 1 lbs of PLA? Could you share the study you make compared to other materials re: greenhouse and global warming? What’s the weight of the new container versus the old container? are we really reducing the packaging? why the new container does not snap well? just curious, i have read different articles and I am still not convienced that PLA from CORN is the best solution.
[...] From Cornfield to Cup – The New Sustainable Packaging Journey, Stonyfield blog [...]
Stonyfield Amy – thank you so much for your response. Since I usually buy the quart sizes, this is a huge relief.
On the corn sensitivity front, I’m not sure about the PLA you’re using, but since I know several people who’ve had reactions after eating food from “safe” corn-derived packaging (or with corn-derived plastic utensils) I don’t plan to risk it. I expect most other corn allergic folk will have the same inclination. Technically, there shouldn’t be corn proteins in HFCS either, yet it’s a common trigger for a corn allergic response.
On a side note, I do hope you’ll tell people how to dispose of the PLA packages. Especially if mixing PLA in the current recycling stream would do more harm than good by “contaminating” batches of plastic recycling and rendering it unusable.
I’m a New Englander who has been championing Stonyfield yogurt since the late 80′s. I’ve seen some changes as the company expands, but I’ve been able to accept most of them. When I developed an allergy to corn, I became even more loyal to Stonyfield, as it was free of corn syrup and dextrose, and I had no reactions to plain, blueberry, strawberry, black cherry… It can be very difficult to find corn free ready-to-eat foods, and the availability of Stonyfield yogurt (in an airport, at a convenience store) has been a relief on more than one occasion.
I’m heartbroken. I ate Stonyfield because my health is important to me. Now, for the same reason, I can no longer do so. I will miss it.
Hi Amie – We are honored to hear that you have been such a long-time champion of our yogurt and appreciate your loyalty. Keep eating our yogurt and we’ll keep working hard to make products you can feel good about. (And make sure to read our new comment on corn sensitivity – no heartbreak necessary!
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As a dedicated Stonyfield yogurt eater (We have 6 quarts in the fridge right now.), this is of great interest to me.
There seems to have been a change in the environmental movement over the decades. It used to be “Reduce, Reuse, Recycle.” As I’ve grown up, I’ve come to think of that as a hierarchy. Reduce resource use, design what you NEED so it’s reusable, and recycle what cannot be reused.
I fail to see how dedicating huge swathes of land to growing plastics, most of which will be thrown out, is beneficial. Perhaps the carbon footprint is smaller, but what about the “dead zone” at the mouth of the Mississippi River in the Gulf of Mexico? What about the fertilizers, pesticides, and loss of family farms to the monoculture of plastic corn? Will the corn in the plastic be organic? What does that imply for the yogurt in the container?
Glass jars are great for local sales, but not so ecological to transport long distance. How about working to move away from the single-serving market? (Reduce) How about more reusable containers for the school-lunch market? (Reuse) How about investing in campaigns for more widespread recycling? (Recycle)
Lastly, I have several friends who will now be unable to eat your yogurt, due to the corn content in the plastic. I am sorry that you will be losing that share of the market. But perhaps it is a back door to promoting the making of yogurt at home again.
Hi Alexa: We share your feelings about the importance of an entire product life-cycle, that’s why we’ve worked so hard over the years (and continue to do so) to create packaging that is best for the environment throughout its life-cycle, from cradle to grave. We used to think that sustainable packaging had mostly to do with composting and recycling, but in the mid ’80s, when we began examining the environmental aspects of our packaging we discovered that recyclability is just one of many factors to consider when addressing the total environmental impact of packaging. In fact, what happens to a cup after someone eats the yogurt is actually a very small part of the overall impact of the container. We can actually have a more positive impact on the environment by using less packaging material, and more sustainable packaging materials.
We’ve started with lighter packaging which prevents the manufacture and disposal of hundreds of tons of plastic per year, resulting in environmental savings from the decreased air emissions and resource depletion from the manufacture and distribution of the packaging. Just by purchasing our yogurt in the new material consumers support efforts to reduce its overall impact. PLA actually has the potential for further lightweighting as well, so we can reduce even more, and we are already looking into doing so. As for end-of-life, we 100% agree that throwing away the used cups is far from ideal. We believe the best option for our new packaging is a closed loop system – and the recycling of our cups back into lactic acid from which it was made. As recycling infrastructure for PLA is still in its infancy, developing the recovery system for PLA based products is, in fact, our next top priority and something we’re continuing to invest and work–very hard–towards.
Read more about the end-of-life options for the cup and view the life-cycle assessment study that guided our decisions. www.stonyfield.com/madefromplants.
In fairness to Stonyfield Farms, we did get a great reusable, recycled plastic cup from you, in exchange for a bunch of quart lids. Now if only I could convince my kindergartener that the strawberry yogurt in the reusable cup is the same as the strawberry yogurt in the 6-ounce cup. Is Preserve still making those? How was the response to that promotion?
Well that’s bad… I’m a registered dietitian and I work primarily with individuals with multiple food sensitivities, corn being one of the more common ones. I routinely recommend your yogurt to my patients. Guess I can’t do that anymore.
I applaud your desire to move to more environmentally-friendly packaging, but honestly, this isn’t the best choice. I echo the previous commenter about cutting ties with Cargill. If you really want to be environmentally (and non-GMO- and allergy-friendly), how about good old fashioned, non-petro, reusable glass?
cargill? you’ve got to be kidding, right? they’re environmental rapists, destroying the rain forest daily in their quest to be the supergiant of palm oil.
the corn packaging is (kind of) a nifty idea, not exactly great, because you cannot guarantee that the corn used is non GMO. but if you really wanted to make a difference, you’d cut ties with cargill.
sheesh.