New packaging material ends overproduction of virgin plastic

July 2019

Magda du Toit, Corporate Engagement and Communications Manager SA, Bayer. Send an email to  magda.dutoit@bayer.com

In future the 1 litre Roundup^® 360 bottle will be manufactured from more environmentally friendly material that is different from the plastic container used in the past. We are proud to announce that we will be using our ‘non-virgin plastic’ alternative from August 2019 onwards. This new container can be seen as the container of the future and as our contribution to reduce the use of virgin or raw plastic.

Material innovations have helped to make plastics the material of choice in manufacturing end-markets around the globe. But plastics ending up where they don’t belong, fuel negative consequences and pose serious risks to the industry’s future. Bayer, with its partners, no longer support the production of non-recycled plastic. This new bottle is made of 50% post-consumer recycled resin (PCR). 

Post-consumer recycled (PCR) resin is the recycled product of consumers’ waste. As a consumer item, the material has completed its life cycle and can now be used as the basis of recycling. The result is a feedstock equivalent to virgin – or raw – material. Using PCR, the container has no negative impact on the current recycling chain and it meets the needs of a circular economy. But, by using post-consumer recycled resin as a feedstock, we avoid six silo trucks of plastic that could have ended as waste. Recycled plastics contain over 25% less carbon emissions than virgin resins.

These bottles will be introduced in South Africa, Zambia, Malawi, Kenya, Tanzania and Nigeria. We believe that the new packaging will contribute towards a cleaner and greener environment, a circular economy, and cost-effectiveness while it will also remain to provide the quality, durability and safety that our customers were used to.

But, at Bayer, innovation never stops. Our Pack Innovation Steering Team is continuously working to improve sustainability and offers environmental-friendly products and green solutions. The 1 litre PCR-containers are just the first step. We are currently developing other PCR-containers to serve you even better in the future. Together, we take steps towards environmental sustainability.

Publication: July 2019

Section: Pula/Imvula