Nestlé pilots lightweight and fiber-based alternatives to Vittel plastic water bottles

08 Jun 2021 --- Nestlé Waters is trialing two new plastic-reducing bottle innovations for its natural mineral water brand Vittel in France as of next month.

The first, coined Vittel GO, is a 500 mL refillable bottle made from recycled plastic, requiring 40 percent less plastic than a standard 500 mL Vittel bottle. Because the recycled plastic is kept to a minimum, their “very flexible and light” structure requires a reusable protective case. 

The second bottle, Vittel Hybrid, is a recyclable 1 L bottle with an outer cellulose fiber-based shell made entirely from recycled cardboard and newspapers. Its inner plastic liner is made with two times less plastic than a conventional Vittel plastic bottle. 

“The novel water bottles are designed to function just like traditional plastic bottles but with much less plastic. We are really looking forward to hearing our consumers’ feedback and thoughts,” a Nestlé spokesperson tells PackagingInsights.

Nestlé’s Vittel Hybrid bottles are made from recycled cardboard and recycled plastic.Notably, the move aligns with Nestlé’s aims to reduce its virgin plastics use by a third by 2025.

Beyond just rPET
Nestlé Waters’s previous circular plastic efforts had “already” endeavored into 100 percent rPET bottle launches, says the spokesperson, encouraging the company to develop a different approach to reducing plastic materials in water bottles.

“The idea with Vittel Go is to decrease the recycled plastic in the packaging to a minimum,” the spokesperson continues.

“However, because the bottles are made with as little recycled plastic as possible, we designed a protective case that is reusable for a few years. Vittel Go is still a prototype that needs to be further refined.” 

Nestlé Waters adds the 500 mL Vittel Go recharges are intended to be used with the reusable case to avoid consumers spilling water while drinking.

Fiber-based frenzy
The Vittel Hybrid bottle innovation stands out due to total recyclability, says Nestlé. “It is the only hybrid paper bottle to be entirely recyclable. The two parts of the shell fit together and can be separated at the time of recycling.” 

Innova Market Insights pegged “The Fiber-based Frenzy” as its third top packaging trend for 2021, highlighting how innovation in plastic-replacement fiber-based solutions is booming as brands explore plastic waste escape routes.

To facilitate the post-consumption sorting process, Nestlé developed a tear-off tab that allows the plastic part to be easily separated from the cellulose shell. 

Other recyclable-by-design initiatives from the FMCG sector range from FrieslandCampina’s label “zipper” for enhancing the accurate sorting and recycling of PET bottles and Nestlé’s mono-PP baby food pouches.

To scale up the project, Nestlé is collaborating with Ecologic, “a start-up at the forefront of this type of technology,” says the spokesperson, which will facilitate the transition to an industrial scale pending the outcomes of this test.

By Anni Schleicher