Only Major Nationally Distributed Bottled Water Made Using 100% Recycled Plastic : Nestlé Waters Wins ISRI’s 2019 Design for Recycling Award
In recognition of its use of recycled plastic and its product design centered on recycling, the Institute of Scrap Recycling Industries (ISRI) has named Nestlé Waters North America as its 2019 Design for Recycling® (DFR) Award winner.
The DFR Award is ISRI's most prestigious award given annually to the most innovative contribution to products designed with recycling in mind. Nestlé Waters has received the award specifically for the design of its Nestlé Pure Life 700ml bottle made from 100% recycled PET plastic (rPET).
ISRI began presenting the award more than 10 years ago. Previous winners include Dell Inc., EcoStrate, Samsung, LG Electronics, Inc., Cascades Fine Papers Group, Hewlett-Packard, The Herman Miller Company, and Wind Simplicity.
To be eligible for ISRI's Design for Recycling Award, a product must be designed/redesigned and manufactured to:
Contain the maximum amount of materials that are recyclable
Be easily recycled through current or newly designed recycling processes and procedures
Be cost effective to recycle whereby the cost to recycle does not exceed the value of its recycled materials
Be free of hazardous materials that are not recyclable or impede the recycling process
Minimise the time and cost involved to recycle the product
Reduce the use of raw materials by including recycled materials and/or components
Have a net gain in the overall recyclability of the product while reducing the overall negative impact on the environment.
"The Design for Recycling Award recognises proactive steps made by manufacturers that have actively incorporated its principles into products and processes," said Robin Wiener, president of ISRI.
"There are obvious invaluable environmental benefits to using recycled plastics as feedstock in the manufacturing process to which Nestlé Waters has shown a commitment,” Wiener continued. “On top of that, the design of the labeling process also takes into account improving the quality of the recycling stream. Through every stage of the manufacturing process, Nestlé Waters has shown a clear dedication to designing for recycling, and it is an honor to present them with this year's award."
In addition to the Nestlé® Pure Life® bottle being made entirely from recycled content, its design also takes into account end-of-life processing.
For instance, the bottle features a pressure-sensitive label. Unlike traditional adhesive labels that may not release from the PET flakes during the recycling process, potentially damaging the recycling stream, these new labels will release easily during the wash stage of the recycling process so the material can be used to make new bottles again and again.
"Bottles like this are the future of recycling, and so to be recognised with this award is particularly significant. Made from 100% recycled plastic, and 100 recyclable, this Nestlé Pure Life bottle is proof that a fully circular economy is within our reach," said Fernando Mercé, president and chief executive officer of Nestlé Waters North America.
Nestlé Waters North America has been incorporating recycled plastic into its packaging since 2011. In fact, since 2017, all single-serve bottles of the company's Arrowhead® Brand Mountain Spring Water produced in California have been made using 50% recycled plastic.
Most recently, the company also announced that it is on track to nearly quadruple its use of recycled PET plastic (rPET) in less than three years, with an ambition to reach 50% recycled plastic across its U.S. domestic portfolio by 2025
Nestlé Waters will receive the award during the 2019 ISRI Convention and Exposition in Los Angeles.
