I want it all, we want it all and we want it now – sustainability, food safety, brand protection, automation, innovation and let’s not spare the horses. The master plan is coming together very nicely for Sinclair’s humble fruit label. Sustainable packaging solutions have clearly been the hot topic over the last few years and while this demand has not disappeared it’s interesting to see the focus over the last 12 months shift a little toward food safety. The incredible increase in demand for pre-packed produce at retail is just one example of this shift. Back to the fruit label and our plans, I am pleased to report development of a Home Compostable label is underway with labelling trials scheduled. No certified home compostable fruit label product currently exists so this shows the scale of the challenge.
Customers and consumers continue to drive demand for sustainable products guided by industry innovations throwing up new products to select from. However, governments around the world are influencing and directly impacting packaging specifications and timelines. France has adopted regulations that will see only Home Compostable fruit labels acceptable by 1 January 2022. Flanders, a region of Belgium, initally proposed a ban on fruit labels however the EU Commission saw sense and rejected this idea. The USA has reintroduced a Break Free from Plastic Pollution Act into the House of Representatives and if passed would set some tight standards around use of compostable labels only from 1 January 2023. And finally, the New Zealand government is reviewing submissions on a discussion document "Reducing the Impact of Plastic on our Environment".
Delivering on just one promise no longer is acceptable, consumers want it all, heck I want it all and I want to deliver it all as it just makes good sense. We need to and very much intend to be offering proven sustainable products, with food safe guarantees while protecting the customer brand in market.