Sustainable Packaging: Terms Worth Knowing

Table with chinet products and food on it

We are making it easier to understand sustainability and incorporate it into our everyday lives.

The Chinet® brand believes in protecting food, people, and the planet. We are on a mission to do better for our planet by lessening our carbon emissions in line with Science Based Targets Initiative (SBTi) and focusing not just on where our products come from but also on where they end up. As sustainability becomes more important to consumers and companies, we are making it easier to understand and incorporate into our everyday lives.

Here are just a few sustainable terms that are meaningful to the Chinet® brand, our consumers, and the planet.

Sustainable Packaging

Any packaging that uses materials and production practices that limit the impact on our environment can be considered sustainable. While there are no true guidelines for what dictates if packaging is deemed sustainable, important aspects include material usage (renewable, recycled, compostable), resource conservation, reusability, energy efficiency, pollution prevention, and waste reduction. Huhtamaki, the parent company of the Chinet® brand, has an ambition to become the first choice in sustainable packaging.

Compostable

Materials that decompose into natural matter after being exposed to appropriate levels of moisture, temperature, and oxygen are considered compostable. The components become nutrient-rich, non-toxic soil. This process reduces waste in landfills, therefore minimizing the impact on the planet. While some products can be composted at home—like Chinet Classic® plates and bowls—other products—like Chinet Classic® compostable straws—must be composted at a commercial facility.

Post-Consumer Recycled Content

Materials previously used by consumers that are recycled, processed into raw materials and used to manufacture new products are considered post-consumer recycled content. Using recycled materials—like plastics, paper and aluminum—reduces the need to create new resources and decreases the amount of waste that ends up in a landfill. Manufacturers are seeing more demand from consumers for products made with post-consumer recycled materials. Chinet Comfort® cup lids are made with 20% post-consumer recycled plastic.

Carbon-Neutral Production

Companies can achieve carbon-neutral production—or net-zero carbon emissions—by reducing carbon emissions during manufacturing and/or offsetting carbon emissions with renewable energy creation. Huhtamaki hopes to achieve carbon-neutral production by 2030. We are proud to say that three production sites have already achieved zero waste to landfill.

rPet (Recycled Polyethylene Terephthalate)

Sustainable plastic material made from repurposed PET waste is commonly referred to as rPet. Essentially, the clear, durable plastic we throw in our recycling bins at home gets sorted, shredded and reused. For example, every pack of 32-count Chinet Classic® recycled clear cups reuses 51 plastic water bottles. This recycled clear cup was the first 100% rPet cup of its kind.

Renewable Resources

Resources that are naturally replenished or reusable despite consumer consumption—like sun, wind, water and even some precious metals—are renewable resources. Renewable resources have been used to produce energy—including biomass, solar and wind—to replace fossil fuels. In 2023, 50% of our energy came from renewable resources. In addition, Chinet Comfort® cups are made from at least 80% renewable materials.