Spring water talisman opens self-operated rPET plant in US beverage first

23 Jul 2020 --- CG Roxane, the privately held, family-owned and operated maker of Crystal Geyser Alpine Spring Water, has unveiled a mechanically recycled PET (rPET) processing plant in San Bernardino, CA, US – the first of its kind to be opened by a US beverage company. While all Crystal Geyser Alpine Spring Water products are 100 percent recyclable, the plant has enabled the company to uphold its commitment to producing bottles using a minimum of 50 percent rPET at its West Coast plants, with the goal of using 100 percent rPET nationwide in the near future.

“CG Roxane is committed to addressing the plastic problem and we saw the value of rPET as one of several steps towards a solution,” says Kemi Oba, CG Roxane Quality Control Manager. “Running our own rPET production gives us full control over the final product, which is important before we run the material in our bottling plants,” adds Shawn Fitzpatrick, CG Roxane Vice President of Marketing.

The plant has the capacity to produce 35 million pounds of rPET annually, which is nearly a billion plastic water bottles, Fitzpatrick notes. CG Roxane works with local recycling partners in the Los Angeles area to supply recycled plastic flakes to the San Bernardino plant. The plastic flakes are sourced from all different types of PET packaging.

By recycling PET rather than sending it to landfill, more than 3,700 lb of CO2 is saved per metric ton of PET, CG Roxane details. Between 1990-2020, the 500 ml CG Roxane – Crystal Geyser Alpine Spring Water water bottle reduced its virgin PET content by more than 60 percent and bottle weight from 21 to 8 g.

Overcoming rPET discoloration
In the early stages, CG Roxane was confronted with some discoloration issues, with its final bottle production showing a slightly darker tone in the base and neck finish. However, the process has now been “perfected” to maintain a consistent visual appearance. The plant has the capacity to produce 35 million pounds of rPET annually – nearly a billion plastic water bottles.

“Additionally, we believe that the modern eco-minded consumer does care that bottles are made from recycled materials. We found this to be true through a recent consumer survey we commissioned with OnePoll. A key finding in the poll was that 77.9 percent of consumers would rather purchase products made at least in part from recycled materials [compared to] virgin plastic,” Fitzpatrick tells PackagingInsights.

CG Roxane’s rPET process:
Step 1: PET Flakes – The PET flakes received at San Bernardino have already been sorted, cleaned and sliced by a local recycling program partner.

Step 2: rPET Pellets – The flakes are heated, stirred and turned into rPET pellets, which are about the size of a grain of rice. The rPET pellets are then shipped to CG Roxane's bottling plants to produce bottle preforms.

Step 3: Preform – At CG Roxane’s bottling plants, the rPET pellets are blended with virgin PET, heated and molded into bottle preforms. The blending of the two PETs creates a bottle that is a minimum of 50 percent rPET.

Step 4: New Bottle – The preforms are then heated, blown into bottles, and filled with Crystal Geyser Alpine Spring Water. Bottles are filled at source to ensure high-quality freshness, immediately labeled and packaged for shipping.

“Simple... but not easy” 360° integrated campaign
Hot on the heels of the new plant, CG Roxane announced the brand’s first 360° integrated campaign. The campaign tells the “Simple... but not easy ” stories of its commitment to environmental and societal stewardship as well as innovative practices.

“At CG Roxane we are water obsessed [and] committed to only using 100 percent natural spring water, supporting our communities, celebrating our employees, and protecting natural spring sources, even when it’s not easy,” continues Fitzpatrick. “When developing the framework for this campaign, we felt it was essential to tell the stories of the people and processes behind Crystal Geyser Alpine Spring Water.”Crystal Geyser bottles are filled at source, immediately labeled and packaged for shipping.

Highlighting the company’s founding principles, the new campaign consists of a series of animated short films ranging in length from 30-60 seconds. For example, in the “Meet Kemi” film, Oba explains the process of turning millions of pounds of recycled plastic into environmentally-friendly water bottles made with rPET.

The “Simple... but not easy” stories will air during popular cable shows and local news broadcasts in key markets on the West Coast through the summer. Additionally, the films will be leveraged across advanced and connected devices, digital, search, social and owned channels. CG Roxane will also engage users with immersive 3D audio on Spotify.

rPET makes great strides
In other rPET developments, Nestlé Waters North America (NWNA) announced that three more of its US domestic still water brands have converted their bottles to 100 percent rPET. The Ozarka, Deer Park and Zephyrhills natural spring water brands, which have long been fully recyclable, are now using 100 percent recycled plastic in multiple size bottles. The rPET conversions are integral to NWNA’s pledge to achieve 25 percent rPET across its US domestic portfolio by 2021 and 50 percent rPET by 2025.

Meanwhile, Coca-Cola European Partners (CCEP), the world’s largest independent Coca-Cola bottler, announced funding for CuRe Technology – a recycling startup that aims to provide a new lease of life for difficult to recycle plastic polyester waste. Through its innovation investment fund CCEP Ventures, CCEP will enable CuRe to accelerate its “polyester rejuvenation” technology from pilot plant to commercial readiness. Once the technology is commercialized, CCEP will receive the majority of the output from a CuRe-licensed, new-build plant, accelerating the beverage giant's transition to 100 percent rPET.

Conversions to rPET are seen as a key driver in the shift to a circular economy for beverage bottles and other packaging. “We make it. We take it back. We consider this to be our duty, and part of what consumers actually pay for. We are not talkers [and] we are not in the business of greenwashing,” Fitzpatrick concludes.

By Joshua Poole