Czech brand Wild & Coco is packaging its compressed “Cocoguard Shot”, either pure or with a hint of mango or cocoa, in a 100 per cent rPET bottle from Alpla.
The Cocoguard Shot fits 120 millilitres of coconut drink in a plastic bottle. Six of these make up one pack. With the bottle made from recycled PET material, Wild & Coco minimises energy and CO2 consumption during packaging, replaces glass and aluminium with lightweight and shatterproof material and thus creates a convenient and transportable solution for everyday use. Like the bottle, the tethered cap is also made of plastic.
When talking about the talks about the successful replace project, Marek Grueber, sales manager at Alpla in Bystřice, the recycled material makes the small bottle stand out.
“The customer target was a smaller bottle made of 100 per cent rPET,” Grueber explained. “Switching from glass to plastic and halving the volume from 250 millilitres (glass) to 120 millilitres (PET) also reduced the weight from 145 grams to 13.5 grams. We obtain most of the material from our own plants at ALPLArecycling.”
The project took about a year from the idea to the market launch – including product development at Wild & Coco, label design, packaging testing and the acquisition of a new filling line.
The pure plastic packaging solution saves CO2 compared to the glass-metal cap combination. The carbon footprint is significantly lower – and not just because of the smaller packaging.
“We save around 80 per cent of emissions per bottle. The 120-millilitre bottle made of 100 per cent rPET with a plastic cap emits 44 grams of CO₂ equivalent (CO₂e),” Grueber added. “For the glass bottle twice the size with a metal cap, it is 215 grams.”
From development to series production, Alpla and Wild & Coco overcame a number of challenges including finding a bottle with a suitable shape, size and neck finish for the viscous consistency of the Cocofir filling.
“For the start, we opted for a standard version – a customised design could follow in the future. And, of course, we supported Wild & Coco with our expertise during the changeover to PET filling technology,” Grueber noted.
