Success Story: Annie's Homegrown

Location: 
Berkeley, CA
Line of Business: 
Manufacturer of pastas, snacks, dressings, condiments, sauces, and frozen foods. In 2014, Annie’s was acquired by General Mills, one of the world’s leading food companies.
Start Date: 
2014
Why the company uses How2Recycle labels: 

Annie’s sustainable packaging strategy centers around aligning its mission and values with its packaging. While part of the strategy is to design for recyclability, the company realized that many consumers don’t know how to recycle packaging correctly. The company opted to use the How2Recycle label because it clearly communicates to consumers how each packaging component should be handled to ensure proper recycling or disposal.

Key Benefits: 
  • Reinforces Annie’s values of honesty and transparency.
  • Helps draw consumers’ attention to package recycling messaging.
  • Helps consumers properly recycle or dispose of Annie’s packaging.
  • Helps guide internal communication and decision-making about packaging material choices and design.
  • Helps position Annie’s as a leader in sustainable packaging practices.
Key Learnings: 
  • The How2Recycle label is a useful tool to guide the packaging design phase because it encourages discussion around packaging types and materials, and promotes the design of more recyclable packaging.
  • Complex packaging types require larger How2Recycle labels and therefore more physical space on the package—which is not always available.
  • The How2Recycle label is a good planning tool for packaging development decisions.
  • To accelerate the rollout of the label, incorporate the How2Recycle label as a minimum standard for new and existing products.