As Mars Wrigley’s world-first paper-based flexible wrappers for Mars Bar, Snickers and Milky Way chocolates hit national shelves, the company is boosting its investment in the manufacturing operations at its Ballarat factory where the products are packaged, building on more than $67 million invested since 2021.
The latest round of investment, at $28.8 million, will bolster Mars Wrigley’s local innovation and manufacturing capabilities as it continues to modernise its manufacturing operations through key equipment upgrades.
The company says this modernisation will pave the way for further development of sustainable packaging solutions and enable greater innovation across its filled bar and bitesize portfolios.
Asked if further investment is on the cards for the facility, Anthony Grey, manager, Product and Packaging at Mars Wrigley, told F&DB's stablemate PKN that the company is committed to redesigning its entire product portfolio for circularity, and to enable this, the company will be continuing to invest in its manufacturing capabilities.
“In total, we’ve invested more than $2.5m into our paper-based packaging project over the last three years; this includes investment into our machinery and manufacturing technology, as well as the material substrate to enable us to create a solution that retains product quality and freshness while being able to be recycled via kerbside recycling. Although we are very proud of what we’ve achieved thus far, our plan is to continue investing to modernise our manufacturing and innovation capabilities.”
Among the products manufactured at Ballarat are the company's three biggest selling chocolate bar brands. Mars tops the list, with 42 million bars sold annually in Australia, followed by Snickers with 36 million and Milky Way with almost 10 million. Production is up 18 per cent from 2020 when the company sold around 74 million bars.
As previously reported by PKN, Mars Wrigley’s roll-out across these brands of recyclable paper-based packaging – developed and tested at the Ballarat facility in partnership with packaging supplier Amcor – is a pioneering shift for the global group.
Andrew Leakey, general manager of Mars Wrigley said, “I’m proud that we are leading world-class innovation in packaging and sustainability from Australia in what is a world-first for us as a business.
“We are the first Mars Wrigley market in the world to launch a recyclable paper-based packaging at this size and scale, and it speaks volumes to the commitment of our team locally who have been working on this project for almost three years.
“We trialled many different materials and approaches before we landed on our paper-based solution, but one thing that was non-negotiable for us was to ensure that consumers could recycle our packaging within our current recycling infrastructure. Seeing our bars on shelf now is an incredibly proud moment for me,” Leakey said.
Grey added, “We are currently sharing our learnings with other markets and know that paper-based packaging is being explored as a possible packaging solution in Europe and the US. As each region has a different recycling infrastructure, we’re sharing our learning with other markets for them to evaluate whether it’s the right material is for their particular set of infrastructure.”
Asked what products are next in line here in Australia for conversion to paper wrappers, Grey responded, “We’re focusing on transitioning our entire Australian-made chocolate bar portfolio, and are working on transitioning our funsize bars to paper-based packaging over the coming 12 to 18 months. Rather than a ‘one-size-fits-all’ approach, our focus is on finding the right packaging solution for the right product, so we’re exploring a number of materials as we work to redesign our packaging for circularity.”
The new paper wrapper is made from Amcor’s AmFiber Performance Paper, comprising FSC-certified paper, a thin plastic barrier layer, sealants and printing inks. Amcor says the locally manufactured paper is dynamic enough to be printed with either flexographic or gravure technology and finished with a heat- or cold-seal adhesive.
Plastic barrier layer notwithstanding, the packaging can still be recycled via kerbside recycling as validated by APCO's PREP tool. According to Amcor, recycling tests show that the material surpasses an 80 per cent recovered fiber threshold, making it recyclable in most global paper streams.
Amcor and Mars Wrigley are reportedly working on the second iteration of this packaging, which aims to remove the plastic layer.
The barrier in the new wrapper, according to Amcor, delivers a better moisture barrier than other paper packaging, and provides a longer shelf-life for oxygen and moisture sensitive products, with grease-resistant properties too.
Richard Smith, Amcor’s director of Sustainability, Asia Pacific said, “At Amcor we continue to innovate and expand our product offering in ANZ, to ensure we are meeting our customers growth aspirations.
“Amcor has a proud local history in paper packaging. Our AmFiber Performance Paper redefines the capabilities of traditional paper packaging, providing a wide range of functional benefits to meet the changing needs of consumers.
“We want to be part of the solution, advancing the development of our packaging technology to create a local circular economy for flexible packaging.”
It’s estimated once the switch from plastic to paper is made across all Mars Wrigley's chocolate bars, it will eliminate more than 360 tonnes of plastic from the company’s value chain.
Starting 10 April, supermarkets and convenience stores have begun to retail, in the new packaging, the 47g and 64g Mars Bar, 44g and 64g Snickers and 45g Milky Way bars.
Brooke Donnelly, Coles’ GM Sustainability has welcomed the introduction of Mars Wrigley’s alternative packaging onto supermarket shelves and says she believes business innovation and collaboration are necessary to drive forward sustainable solutions for consumers.
“It’s encouraging to see Australian manufacturers take steps towards providing sustainable alternatives to plastic packaging. In order to drive further innovation and achieve mutual sustainability goals, it’s important for organisations to collaborate and work together. With businesses increasingly measured on their impact on society and the environment, sustainable innovation can be a key driver of both societal and commercial success,” Donnelly said.
As part of the group's commitment to its $1bn Sustainable in a Generation plan, Mars Wrigley is committed both in Australia and globally to supporting and creating a circular economy where packaging never becomes waste.
