Recyclable and resealable, new polypropylene containers and lids for Lloyd’s® Barbeque Co.’s shredded meat products pack a sustainability zing with the elimination of paperboard sleeves made possible through In-Mold Labeling technology. The new custom 18-oz tubs, from injection molder Airlite Plastics Co. (www.airliteplastics.com), were in development for two years and include all dietary and product information printed directly on the tub.

Also incorporated into the design of the container are “stay cool handles” that Lloyds’s says make it easier for the consumer to remove the heated tub from the microwave.

The PP tubs and lids are molded in two colors for specific brand identity: Two products in Honey Hickory BBQ Sauce are in golden-yellow tubs, while three shredded meat products in Original BBQ sauce are in red tubs. According to Lloyd’s, eliminating the paper sleeves has resulted in significant source reduction and a sizable sustainability savings.

The full impact of the change is outlined in an Environmental Impacts Report on Lloyd’s Web site. Among some of the annual sustainability savings documented in the four-page report are:
• The elimination of 973 tons of paper, equal to saving 9734 trees;
• A reduction of total energy requirements, enough to heat 102 homes;
• Reduced sulfur dioxide pollutants equivalent to eliminating 1,138 semi-trucks; and
• The reduction of enough solid waste to fill 22 garbage trucks.