3M’s Commercial Solutions Division announced today it will soon cease using mottle white and bleached corrugated boxes for several products in the Scotch-Brite commercial line. The market-leading products—including Scotch-Brite Hand Pads and Griddle Cleaning products—will soon be packaged ingreener Kraft brown boxes. The change is expected to begin late this summer as white packaging inventories are depleted.
“For 56 years, the Scotch-Brite brand has been synonymous with the often imitated bright white box, which was a testament to the high-quality products contained within,” said Mike Laatsch, U.S. Sales and Marketing Director for 3M Commercial Solutions. “The new box comes with a promise: the same great products you trust, now with more sustainable packaging.”
3M is making the switch to greener packaging because the manufacturing process for Kraft brown boxes requires less wood and water, and emits fewer greenhouse gases than bleached or mottle white corrugated cartons. The manufacturing of Kraft brown boxes also emits fewer harmful organic compounds that result in dioxins, a known carcinogen, being released into the environment. 3M estimates the annual environmental benefits* of converting its shipping boxes from white to Kraft brown equate to:
· 172 tons of wood saved—equal to more than 1,000 trees.
· 915,000 gallons of water saved—enough to fill an Olympic-sized swimming pool.
· 113,000 lbs. of less CO2 emitted—equivalent to taking 10 cars off the roads for an entire year.
“3M continues to be a leader in manufacturing products and packaging in a way that’s less harmful to our environment,” said Laatsch. “In the next year, this effort will save trees, reduce use of millions of gallons of water, and will lessen the impact on our natural resources.”
For more than 70 years, 3M has built upon practices that support economic, social, and environmental sustainability. For more information on the Scotch-Brite packaging change, please visitgo.3M.com/GreenerPackaging.
This packaging change is the latest news from 3M Commercial Solutions Division. Recognized and respected as a leading food service solutions provider for more than 56 years, 3M continues to provide solutions to efficiently and cost-effectively clean kitchen facilities and equipment while still maintaining cosmetic appearance.
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3M captures the spark of new ideas and transforms them into thousands of ingenious products. Our culture of creative collaboration inspires a never-ending stream of powerful technologies that make life better. 3M is the innovation company that never stops inventing. With $31 billion in sales, 3M employs 89,000 people worldwide and has operations in more than 70 countries. For more information, visit www.3M.com or follow @3MNews on Twitter.
