Boulder-based pet food company, Only Natural Pet, in June donated sustainable packaging research conducted by Eco-Cycle on its behalf to the Pet Sustainability Coalition (PSC) so that the organization could share it with the rest of the pet industry.

“The information presented in the report has been immensely valuable to our team in forming our current and future packaging decisions and we think the whole industry can benefit from its outlined solutions,” said Marty Grosjean, CEO of Only Natural Pet.

The study, “Examination of Alternatives to Multilaminate Pouches,” outlines sustainable flexible packaging solutions and opportunities in the pet industry, suggesting best practices, acceptable solutions and options to avoid, as well as other ideas on improving package designs.

“The more companies that get their hands on this report, the better equipped they will be to make better decisions about their packaging,” said Caitlyn Dudas, executive director of PSC.

Only Natural Pet, a subsidiary of PetSmart, is a founding member of PSC.

Only Natural Pet worked with Braskem and Peel Plastic Products in 2018 to develop flexible packaging for its Mindful Meals dry dog food line that incorporates at least 30% bioplastic material into each bag. The sugarcane-based biopolymer by Braskem is made from ethanol, a renewable and sustainable resource, and the manufacturing process for packaging material results in a negative carbon footprint.

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