3 solutions that could make egg cartons more sustainable

Eco-conscious packaging is one way the egg industry can show consumers they value sustainability and the environment.

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Organic egg co-op Nature’s Yoke has announced they plant to move to 100% post-consumer paper cartons by the end of 2020 (Nature’s Yoke).
Organic egg co-op Nature’s Yoke has announced they plant to move to 100% post-consumer paper cartons by the end of 2020 (Nature’s Yoke).

Eco-conscious packaging is one way the egg industry can show consumers they value sustainability and the environment.

Going green is a hot topic with modern shoppers. A 2019 report from Innova Market Insights found that consumers are willing to pay more for products from companies dedicated to reducing the amount of plastic waste they produce.

A move from plastic to paper

Nature’s Yoke, an organic, pasture-raised and free-range egg co-op of farms located in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, announced March 9 that it would move to cartons made of 100% post-consumer paper by the end of 2020. Previously, the company used post-consumer recycled plastic (rPET) egg cartons.

The move will eliminate the use of more than 4.5 million egg cartons each year, the company noted.

“We've been in business since 1962 and ever since then our goals have been to leave the world a better place. That's all part of what we are,” said George Weaver, IV, the Marketing and Brand Specialist, Nature’s Yoke. “For us, that meant making a switch in the kind of cartons we use.”

Reusable cartons

The egg industry’s first reusable egg carton is currently in trials at Hanover Co-op Food Stores in New Hampshire and Vermont. The egg carton is made of recycled, durable, BPA-free plastic that can be washed at home and reused.

"We plan to expand this program in 2020 to reach even more consumers and amplify the program's impact nationally with major retailers clamoring for this type of sustainable innovation,” says Jesse Laflamme, Pete and Gerry's Organic Eggs CEO. 

The average consumer eats 279 eggs, or approximately 23 cartons, per year. If these eggs were all sold in reusable cartons, it could save 1,800 eggs per person over their lifetime, the company said.

Biodegradable – or even plantable – packaging

Another innovative solution, the Biodegrapak, is designed to planted after use instead of thrown away. The packaging is made of cleared paper pulp, flour, starch and biological seeds and holds four eggs. Winner of the ‘Young Balkans Designers’ Contest 2019, users can water and plant the packaging once they are done with it so the seeds grow into green plants.

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