Groundbreaking 300g wine bottle goes online

Companies across the wine supply chain now have free access to a design for a groundbreaking 300g wine bottle thanks to a new online resource from WRAP (Waste & Resources Action Programme). The screwcap bottle, which is 40g lighter than the previous lightest bottle available within the UK, is the result of a collaborative project to cut the environmental impact of wine packaging and maximise the associated commercial benefits.
 
Available to download without charge at www.wrap.org.uk/300g, the design was developed by a WRAP-led industry working group which included Tesco, Quinn Glass and Kingsland Wine & Spirits. Weighing 188g less than the average wine bottle, it not only reduces raw material, manufacturing and transportation costs without affecting bottle strength, but also significantly cuts CO2 emissions. The new container also incorporates a high percentage (71%) of recycled content, closing the recycling loop and creating a market for the UK’s large surplus of green glass.
 
Tesco has already placed an order for 10 million of the new 300g bottles and it is hoped that more companies will follow suit, with Asda, The Co-operative and Sainsbury’s all expressing interest. If the lighter design was adopted for all wine sold within the UK it would generate an annual glass saving of 153,000 tonnes – equivalent to the weight of more than 460 jumbo jets – and cut CO2 emissions by 119,000 tonnes.
 
Nicola Jenkin, drinks category manager at WRAP, said: “More and more companies want to access the environmental and commercial advantages of lightweighting. The development of a commercially viable 300g wine bottle shows the success which can be achieved through a collaborative approach.
 
“By taking part in such initiatives, companies across the wine supply chain can drive best practice and pull together to achieve lasting change, benefiting both the future of the planet and their bottom line.
 
“Even greater savings – up to 375g of CO2 per 75cl bottle – could be harnessed if the design was combined with bulk-importing wine to the UK and bottling it here. Bulk importation not only drives the market for locally-recycled green glass, it also responds to increasing consumer and retailer demands for sustainably produced wine, enhances shelf-life and can reduce transportation costs by up to 40%.”
 
Moves towards lightweighting and bulk importation have been supported by a number of notable wine commentators. These include Financial Times wine correspondent and MW Jancis Robinson OBE, who stated: “If wine producers were to collectively decide to be more sensible about their bottle choices, our world of wine could make a real impact on the amount of natural resources used up by manufacturing and transporting glass around the globe.”
 
The development of the 300g bottle formed part of WRAP’s pioneering GlassRite Wine project, which works in partnership with over 80 wine producers, agents, fillers and retailers across the globe to encourage bulk importation and the use of lighter weight wine bottles with a high recycled content.

1 February 2010 - Felicity Murray