Sustainability has become a significant driving force in the global food supply chain as the demand for alternative products increasingly pressures manufacturers and distributors into abandoning single-use non-biodegradable plastic packaging.
In a bid to boost sustainability, material science company Great Wrap has ventured into a trailblazing partnership with Spiral Foods, a supplier of quality traditional foods in Australia, leading the food and beverage (F&B) industry in adopting compostable food packaging materials.
In an exclusive interview with Australian Manufacturing, Great Wrap Co-CEO and Co-Founder Julia Kay highlighted the benefits of the collaboration and what it means for compostable innovation in the F&B industry.
Reinventing the future of food distribution
Great Wrap, a company established in 2019, is the producer of the only compostable stretch wrap in Australia and the world’s first Compostable Pallet Wrap made with food waste and compostable biopolymers.
The company began partnering with businesses and like-minded brands in Australia to advance its goal of ending the existence of traditional stretch wrap while having a positive impact on supply chains around the country.
On the other hand, Spiral Foods Group, an Australian-owned and operated company, was on the lookout for strong and sustainable packaging materials to be used in the distribution of pallets containing its organic products across Australia and beyond.
“Spiral Foods reached out to Great Wrap earlier this year as they were interested in using our Compostable Hand Pallet Wrap and Compostable Machine Pallet Wrap. Since then, we’ve worked closely with them to test and trial our product and ensure it met the standards needed to ship pallets around the country and internationally,” Kay said.
Together, the two companies aim to make significant strides in introducing compostable materials to the manufacturing and distribution industries and serve consumers who value responsible business practices.
Sustainability in the supply chain
Manufactured using food waste and compostable biopolymers, Great Wrap is designed to help businesses decarbonise their operations while keeping the durability of traditional pallet wraps used today.
However, unlike traditional wrap, which can take hundreds of years to break down in landfills, Great Wrap is compostable and does not persist in the environment indefinitely.
“Using a product like Great Wrap just fits in with what we are trying to do at Spiral Foods. We want our products to be as natural as possible and our packaging to be as sustainable as possible, so using a compostable pallet wrap is another piece of our puzzle,” said Raphaelle Wilson, marketing director of Spiral Foods.
Spiral Foods started importing traditional foods from Japan, including naturally fermented miso and sauces, noodles and sea vegetables. Macrobiotic foods were a niche market in Australia in the 70’s and Spiral Foods worked with small artisan manufacturers during this era.
Now, with 40 years of experience, the company touts an expansive customer base around the world and sends out pallets of products across Australia and abroad.
“We send out pallets of products both nationally and internationally. We send a lot — definitely in the tens of thousands each year. A strong and reliable pallet wrap is a non-negotiable,” Wilson said.
Spiral Foods now uses Great Wrap’s Compostable Hand Pallet Wrap in its Coburg warehouse, with plans set to adopt Machine Pallet Wrap after the product’s launch in the near future.
Transition to compostable
With the call for environmentally friendly practices across industries resonating more than ever, companies are deploying wide-ranging initiatives to reduce their carbon footprint.
The partnership between Spiral Foods and Great Wrap could serve as an entry point for compostable innovations to enter into the food and beverage industry, according to the Great Wrap CEO.
“Spiral Foods is an early adopter of Great Wrap and we’re proud that they’re using our Compostable Pallet Wrap to wrap and send their pallets in Melbourne.”
“As the only Australian manufacturer of compostable stretch wrap, it is promising to see a leading Australian supplier and distributor of quality foods transitioning away from traditional pallet wrap,” Kay said.
By introducing the compostable pallet wrap into the F&B supply chain, Spiral Foods and Great Wrap aim to kickstart an industry-wide transformation towards a greener, more sustainable future.
For more information about Great Wrap, visit greatwrap.com.au.
