Mars bars undergo recyclable paper wrappers trials for UK market

Mars Wrigley UK has announced that its Mars bars will be wrapped in paper packaging rather than conventional plastic wrapping.

According to a Tesco representative, the invention will be piloted in 500 Tesco shops throughout the country beginning this week for a short time.

The move is part of the firm’s drive to experiment with alternative forms of packaging, and the corporation stated that the input will be used to guide future packaging projects.

Consumers and environmentalists have recently put pressure on major corporations to find alternatives to plastic and aid the environment. Nestlé launched a trial run in Australia in January of this year to employ paper packaging for the KitKat chocolate wafer snack.

In the run-up to Christmas, Nestlé’s other brand, Quality Street, switched from traditional foil and plastic wrapping to recyclable paper.

Mars stated that it is investing significantly in various forms of packaging in order to accomplish its short-term aim of lowering the usage of virgin plastics by a fourth while simultaneously boosting the use of recycled plastic in its packaging.

“For Mars bar, the challenge was to find the right paper packaging solution with an adequate level of barrier properties to protect the chocolate while guaranteeing the food safety, quality, and integrity of the product to prevent food waste,” said Richard Sutherland-Moore, a packaging expert at Mars Wrigley UK’s research and development center.