The popular French sugar brand, Daddy Sugar, has switched from its previous plastic container to a fully recyclable Sonoco cardboard container with a PP sprinkler.
Aiming to reduce its packaging's carbon footprint, Cristalco redesigned its 500g Daddy Sugar icing sugar sprinkler container. The original design featured a polyethylene (PEHD) body, an oriented polystyrene (OPS) sleeve, and a polypropylene (PP) lid, making it a prime candidate for an eco-friendly revamp.
After five years of work, six technical studies, and multiple life cycle analyses, Cristalco is launching a new Sonoco cardboard package with 80% less plastic.
The new cardboard container, supplied by Sonoco, contains 68% recycled fiber and includes a PE film inner liner to preserve contents and prevent sugar caking by protecting against humidity. The PP lid, produced by Rovip, features two openings: one with six small holes for sprinkling and another with a wider opening for pastry-making.
“We’ve improved the sprinkler so that the icing sugar pours out better,” says Julie Moréac, Head of Packaging Development and Technical Support at Cristalco. “Our goal was to design the lid to be as eco-friendly as possible while maintaining its functionality. It needed to offer easy dispensing, opening and closing, and a tamper-evident seal. The lid also had to retain its shape without deforming, despite reducing the material used. These were significant challenges.”
Moréac continues, “Additionally, the lid is secured in the can without glue to prevent contamination and minimize material use. The challenge was to securely fit the lid into the cardboard body, which can vary in diameter by a few tenths of a millimeter.”
An 80% Reduction in Virgin Plastic Use
Sonoco rose to the challenge, resulting in Cristalco reducing the amount of virgin plastic in its primary packaging by 80% since 2019. This compares to a 64% reduction before the switch to rigid paper containers.
The new Sonoco rigid paper containers will be available on supermarket shelves under the "Daddy" and "Erstein" brands starting in June 2024.
Sebastien Fabre, Strategic Account Manager at Sonoco Consumer Europe, adds: “We are always delighted to help companies achieve their sustainability goals by reducing non-recyclable materials in their packaging and finding alternative solutions. We are pleased to have been part of the solution for Cristalco and look forward to continuing our collaboration in the future.”
