Comparing Milk Packaging Options for Pembrokeshire Primary Schools

Summary

The research summarised in this case study was borne from the desire by several schools in Pembrokeshire to move from plastic to alternative materials for the dispensing of milk to primary school children on a daily basis.

It investigated the environmental impact in terms of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and costs associated with the different packaging types for milk. These included:

• a plastic bottle (the current packaging format that acted as a baseline);
• a glass bottle alternative; and
• a pergal alternative (bulk storage of milk in a container that fits in a refrigerated dispenser).

The research revealed that glass bottles and pergals are less costly per serving than the plastic alternative, with pergals offering the most cost-effective solution.

Furthermore, pergals were found to have the lowest GHG emissions per serving, followed by the plastic bottle and then the glass bottle. The environmental impact of glass bottles was shown to be have been significantly influenced by the GHG emissions of transport. Both the distances from farm to bottling plant and bottling plant to school, were much larger than the local supply chain of the plastic bottles and pergals.

To understand the transport impact further, a scenario was modelled for glass bottles with the same local supply chain as plastic bottles and pergals. This demonstrated that if local supply chains could provide glass bottling, the environmental impact of this packaging format would be greatly reduced. This was still slightly higher than pergals, but significantly lower than plastic bottles.

Although the data and assumptions are based on the experiences of two schools, where possible they have been adapted to be more generalised. As noted above, one of the key drivers for the results is the proximity of the milk supply chain. Where the supply chain significantly differs from this case study, the results and therefore the conclusions are also likely to differ.