Lakeside Organic Gardens switched to packing its vegetables in plastic cartons made out of recycled material, which can be recycled yet again. (Photo courtesy Lakeside Organic Gardens)
Eliminating the use of wax cartons is one way that Lakeside Organic Gardens is answering the call for more sustainable packaging.
The company, with 3,000 acres of vegetables, has switched from wax cartons to plastic cartons that are made of recycled material, said Marliese McWherter, creative marketing manager for Lakeside Organic Gardens, Watsonville, Calif.
“We do a lot of wet vegetables, and a lot of our produce is hydrocooled,” she said.
“We have removed millions and millions of pounds of wax every year out of the landfills.”
Instead of wax cartons going to landfills, the company’s plastic cartons can be recycled, she said.
“It is a slow process, but we are slowly starting to find recycling centers and our vendor is helping us throughout this process to get these boxes yet again recycled,” she said.
At the retail level, consumers may not see how the company is creating more sustainable packaging through the elimination of wax cartons. In fact, some customers sometimes complain to Lakeside Organic about the plastic wrap on they find on cauliflower, iceberg lettuce, or celery.
When the company does get feedback like that from consumers, McWherter reminds those shoppers to approach their retailers and ask that the store stock naked packs without plastic wrappers, which are also options from Lakeside.
“(Retailers) are asking for wrapped lettuce, they’re asking for wrapped cauliflower and bagged celery,” she said.
“I tell (consumers), go back to your retailer and ask them to not stock with plastic because we can do it either way.”
While corrugated paper or pulp packaging is gaining steam with berry and tomato growers, McWherter said the packs are not suitable for the many wet and cooled commodities that Lakeside Organic Gardens sells.
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