Bacardi has made a giant leap forward in the fight against climate change and plastic pollution as it unveils plans to put the world’s most sustainable spirits bottle on shelf by 2023. The new 100% biodegradable bottle will replace 80 million plastic bottles – 3,000 tons of plastic – currently produced by Bacardi across its portfolio of brands every year.
The move has been made possible by Bacardi’s collaboration with Danimer Scientific, a leading developer and manufacturer of biodegradable products. Petroleum-based plastics used by Bacardi today will be replaced by Danimer Scientific’s Nodax PHA, a biopolymer which derives from the natural oils of plant seeds such as palm, canola and soy. According to Bacarddi, the new spirits bottle made from Nodax PHA will biodegrade in a wide range of environments, including compost, soil, freshwater and seawater, and after 18 months disappear without leaving behind harmful microplastics.
BACARDÍ rum will be the first spirit to appear in the new bottle before the plant-based material is rolled out to replace single-use plastic across the entire Bacardi supply chain and the company’s 200 brands and labels including BOMBAY SAPPHIRE gin, GREY GOOSE vodka, PATRÓN tequila, MARTINI vermouth and DEWAR’S Scotch whisky.
“When we set ourselves the goal of being 100% plastic free by 2030, we knew that it would take ground-breaking advances in packaging design to make it achievable, and that’s exactly what’s happening through our partnership with Danimer.” Jean-Marc Lambert, senior vice president, global operations for Bacardi.
“It may sound small, but add that up across every bottle produced globally and we’re talking many tons of plastic every day. Once we’ve fixed the problem, we’ll be open-sourcing the solution for the entire industry to use. This isn’t about competitive advantage, it’s about doing the right thing for the planet,” added Lambert.
The announcement by Bacardi represents a major step towards the company achieving its goal of being 100% plastic-free in the next 10 years. As well as launching the new biopolymer bottle in 2023, the company has also committed to removing all its non-essential, single-use plastic, including all plastic gift box materials and plastic point-of-sale materials, in the next three years.
Nodax PHA was verified as a truly biodegradable alternative to petrochemical plastics by the University of Georgia (UGA) and the UGA New Materials Institute in a 2018 study. Danimer Scientific currently uses the material for a wide range of applications, including thermoformed trays, drinking straws, flexible and multi-layer film packaging, coatings, disposable cutlery, and more.
