Hovis goes green with sugarcane-based bag

The new Seed Sensations bread bag from Hovis Ltd. is made almost entirely from renewable polyethylene (PE)—a first in the market.

The company worked alongside Amcor Flexibles who developed the sugarcane-based bag to deliver a 75% lower product carbon footprint than the former traditional bread bags made with plastic from non-renewable fossil sources and also to gain official certification. To coincide with this re-launch, Hovis will be communicating its Carbon Trust certification on the packaging by having an on-pack flash which communicates its lower carbon footprint and commitment to sustainability.

“The Hovis brand has always stood for goodness and healthy products. From its launch, we have focused on the nutritional benefits of the wheatgerm,” Richard McQuillan, Hovis marketing manager, tells Packaging Digest. “When Amcor presented the renewable PE project to us, we saw an obvious fit for Hovis as we look for ways in which we can reduce environmental impacts through packaging format changes.”

When asked about step to certification, Russell Granville, product development manager, Amcor Flexibles Europe & Americas (Produce & Bakery), tells Packaging Digest that the very first step was the successful certification by the Carbon Trust of Amcor's Advanced Sustainability Stewardship Evaluation Tool (ASSET) in May 2012. The next step was to then work specifically with The Carbon Trust to validate the carbon footprint for the new Hovis Seed Sensations renewable PE bread bag. They also worked with a company called Beta Analyticals in London. Beta Analyticals is able to technically evaluate films and validate/confirm that they are made from renewable PE.  

The premium Seed Sensations bread bag is the first in the Hovis product range to be launched with this new packaging format.