Mondelez, a global snack company, and Amcor, a company who develops responsible packaging solutions, have invested in Licella, a leading recycling business, with the shared end goal of ending plastic waste. The businesses have agreed to help fund, Advanced Recycling Victoria (ARV) which is one of Australia’s first advanced recycling facilities and was developed in Australia by Licella.

This investment has been made because at ARV the facility is using a process called Cat-HTR, which has created a system capable of upcycling end-of-life plastic. The investment aims to help recycling efforts and encourage a circular economy for plastic packaging in Australia.

Cat-HTR stands for Catalytic Hydrothermal Reactor and it involves using the world’s most advanced hydrothermal liquefaction technology to constantly recycle end-of-life plastic, to prevent that plastic ending up in landfill.

Along with this investment Mondelez International has outlined a long-term business strategy, including sustainability as its fourth key pillar, in order to improve growth and increase business value. Furthermore, Mondelez has introduced a new strategy called ‘Light and Right’ which showcases their aim to simplify materials and get rid of all unnecessary packaging throughout the business. Mondelez makes it clear that whilst they understand that plastic has always played a part in the security, quality, protection and preservation of food products, plastic, they are now looking to bridge the gap between quality packaging and sustainable local recycling solutions.

Christine Montenegro McGrath, Senior Vice President and Chief Global Impact and Sustainability Officer at Mondelēz International, says: “Our packaging strategy is focused on using less packaging, better packaging and helping to build better systems. This investment brings together multiple stakeholders in the supply chain to scale the infrastructure and technology needed to help create a more sustainable future for plastics and is part of our longer-term focus on working toward our goal of net-zero packaging waste by supporting circular economies.”

Amcor also commented on this partnership, Frank Lehmann, Vice President of Corporate Venturing and Open Innovation at Amcor says: “Amcor is continually seeking opportunities to invest in new technologies that will bring long-term benefits to our customers, consumers and the planet. We recognise our products can play a vital role in the circular economy, and partnerships like this enhance our ability to deliver innovative solutions for our customers, like Mondelēz International.” 

The investment will present AR with the ability to process an estimated 20,000 tons of end-of-plastic per year and shows the companies combined aim to encourage a circular economy by driving recycling efforts. All three companies have outlined plans to reach up to 120,000 tons per year.