Bacardi Limited is working to increase its sustainability profile by pouring its rums and premixed cocktails into lightweighted, recyclable bottles.
PET packaging
One example of the company’s sustainable packaging efforts: the bottles holding all of the Bacardi Party Drinks are composed of PET, the plastic commonly used for bottled water and other non-alcoholic drinks. Roger Van Dusen, manager o global packaging development for Bacardi, told FoodProductionDaily the unbreakable packaging, in addition to offering improved sustainability, means the drinks can be enjoyed in more locations.
"Since glass should not be used around the pool, on a boat, or at many public events, we redesigned the Bacardi Party Drinks packaging and were able to reduce the weight by 90% using PET," he said.
The use of PET reportedly has enabled Bacardi to conserve transportation costs, thanks to the reduced overall weight. Additionally, the PET containers are said to require less energy to produce than glass.
Revamped bottles
The company also has redesigned the packaging for its Classic Cocktails beverage line. The updated bottle weighs 30% less than before, which also leads to reduced transportation costs and emissions.
The company reportedly has decreased the weight of its packaging by more than 7% overall since 2006. The reduction in material weight is roughly the equivalent of taking 1,100 full truckloads off the highway.
Bacardi’s packaging reduction is part of the company’s overall sustainability efforts, christened the Good Spirited program. Its goals set for the year 2022 include reducing overall packaging weight by 15%, eliminating landfill waste at production sites by 2022, and obtaining sugarcane-derived products used in rum production from responsible sources.