Sustainability FAQs

In addition to being lightweight and ensuring product quality, plastics protect our products and help to prevent food waste by offering a unique combination of convenience, availability and food safety. We’re working to ensure we use the minimum adequate amount of plastic packaging to pack products safely, and to ensure the plastic is recyclable at the end of its useful life.

We are also taking action to help create a waste-free future by supporting well-functioning collection, sorting and recycling streams.Vitaflo is a sponsor of the Flexibleplastic fund (FPF) - www.flexibleplasticfund.org.uk. FPF FlexCollect initiative is a pilot feasibility project investigating kerbside collection of soft plastics ie plastic bags, wrapping and pouches by several local councils (lookout to see if your council is participating) with the weekly recycling and refuse collection. This is to support the implementation of household flexible plastic collections across the UK in 2027. The fund encourages everyone involved in recycling flexible plastic to take steps towards flexi recycling that is ultimately based in the UK, fully circular and included in household recycling collections.

We are investigating opportunities to increase the use of recycled plastics we use in our packaging and continue to explore all opportunities to create and obtain sufficient volumes of food- grade quality recycled content.

Vitaflo continually reviews its packaging looking to reduce unnecessary plastic where possible. Since 2019 we have removed 1.4m plastic straws annually from Prozero 250ml and 225,000 medicine cups annually from the Procal Shot range. Look out for news, updates and further information on our dedicated Sustainability site.

The simplification of packaging is important to help improve its recyclability. In order to simplify our packaging materials and packaging structures we have adopted a set of 'Golden Rules' for the design and development of our packaging. The rules focus on optimising the environmental performance of the packed product including optimising the weight and volume of primary, secondary and transport packaging together with avoiding use of difficult to recycle materials eg polyvinyl chloride (PVC), polyvinylidene chloride (PVDC), polystyrene (PS), Expanded polystyrene (EPS).

In March 2023 we changed the plastic sleeve label on Procal Shot which means that, not only can you recycle the bottle, but the whole bottle and wrap-around label is now Designed for Recycling

Vitaflo is constantly exploring innovations in packaging in line with its ambition to reduce packaging whilst ensuring product quality and safety for our patients. We are in the process of evaluating alternative recyclable packaging options in line with our ambition for 95% of our packaging to designed to be recyclable by the end of 2025. This together with our participation in other initiatives demonstrates how Vitaflo is helping to shape a waste-free future.

We currently use a range of materials, including metal, paper and plastic. Our packaging plays a key role in protecting food, preventing food waste and ensuring the quality and safety of our products. Prior to making any changes to packaging, we need to consider and fully evaluate alternative materials to ensure they meet the required standards to safely package our products.

To demonstrate our commitment towards recycling solutions , Vitaflo in the UK are proud to be members of the Flexible Plastic Fund www.flexibleplasticfund.org along with brands such as Nestlé, Pepsico, Mars, Mondelez and Unilever. The Flexible Plastic Fund is an initiative which works with brand owners, retailers, and recyclers to help create the infrastructure and mechanisms for the collection and recycling of flexible plastics. The long-term aim is to drive the landscape towards ensuring that flexible plastic recycling is fully circular and facilitated by local kerbside, household collections.

We see this as an important step towards helping shape a waste-free future

For further details www.flexibleplasticfund.org

We have identified a list of plastics for which recycling schemes are unlikely to be established for food and beverage packaging. We will phase out the use of all these materials across all of our packaging by the end 2024.

In 2021 PVC was removed from all our packaging.

The Procal shot wrap-around bottle label has been replaced to ensure that the complete bottle, cap and label is designed for recycling.

How can Vitaflo help consumers recycle product packaging correctly?

Vitaflo are in the process of adding packaging composition information details to our products labels. The QR code on the product packaging can be easily scanned with a smart phone to show the composition of the product packaging component items.

Please check with your local authority for details on whether the packaging item can be recycled in your area or for further information on how to dispose of correctly.

For the UK visit https://www.recyclenow.com

Our focus areas are:

• Removal of problematic plastics
• Simplification of materials and packaging structures
• Plastic-free packaging / paper
• More recycled content

If you are based in the UK and unsure if you can recycle a packaging material, use the Recycle Now website to check what you can and can’t recycle in your local authority.

For Vitaflo Cooler, Air or Squeezie pouches, visit the RecycleNow website

For flexible sachets visit the RecycleNow website.

It is better for the recycler if you can clean the empty packaging before placing into your recycling bin, especially if it contains food residue.

For flexible packaging e.g. Vitaflo sachets or pouches, consult the collection points section of https://www.recyclenow.com/

Vitaflo achieved Zero waste to landfill status in 2015 at its UK Head Office. Waste on site is segregated to make it easier to recycle and we regularly donate items to local charities rather than putting it them for disposal.

Since 2019, Vitaflo has banned the purchase and use of Single Use Plastic items at its sites in the UK, Australia, and Ireland. We conduct regular audits to confirm the status of each site. We are also extending the scope of these audits to cover all single use items. Where it is not possible to move away from single use items due to food safety or clinical safety reasons, we have ensured that these items are designed to be recyclable.

If you are registered with our home delivery service, Vitaflo To You, you can request for your products to be sent on bi-monthly or quarterly deliveries. More information on Vitaflo at Home can be found on our website, https://www.vitafriendspku.co.uk/pku/homedelivery

We are assessing our entire operational footprint from business travel to how we heat our offices whilst looking at initiatives to improve the efficiencies of our supply chains to reduce our carbon footprint. More can be read on the Nestle Net Zero Roadmap and Vitaflo Our Commitments

The term net zero means achieving a balance between the carbon emitted into the atmosphere, and the carbon removed from it. This balance – or net zero – will happen when the amount of carbon we add to the atmosphere is no more than the amount removed. (Source: What is net zero and how can we get there? - Energy Saving Trust). For Vitaflo, this means achieving a balance between a reduction of greenhouse gas emissions and removal within our value chain by 2050.

Over the last few years, Vitaflo has partnered with our local community in Liverpool on a range of volunteering opportunities. These include:

• Sefton Council: tree planting, wildflower meadow seed planting and beach cleans
• South Liverpool Food Bank: ongoing food bank collection at HQ and volunteering opportunities
• Clothesbank - we are excited to launch our new clothes bank. Proceeds from donated clothing will go to the Whitechapel Centre
• The Whitechapel Centre & The Papercup project: ongoing collection at HQ and volunteering opportunities. We also regularly donate short shelf-life food to the Whitechapel Centre.
• We continue to work with partners and volunteering is a priority to us as a business. In 2022, we completed close to 1000 hours of voluntary work with our partners. We continually educate our colleagues to encourage them to so that they can live sustainable lifestyles both in and outside of work and inspire our future generations. In 2023, we are running a “Just One Thing” campaign in which we are asking our colleagues to commit to one small change to their lives which can have a big impact on the environment by the end of the year, and hopefully lead to a shift in habits in the longer-term. Follow our social media channels for more updates on this.

Vitaflo aim to be mindful of the environment in every decision we make. These decisions span across all areas of our business including our products, packaging, transport, culture and colleague engagement. Within these areas, our key priorities are:

Long Term:

• Ensuring that 100% of our packaging will be recyclable or reusable by the end of 2025.

Short Term:

• Our UK HQ office and manufacturing facility now uses to use 100% renewable electricity.

Vitaflo are continually building relationships in the sustainability landscape by getting involved with both corporate initiatives as well making more local connections. We’re proud to work along with brands such as, Pepsico, Mars, Mondelez and Unilever as part of the Flexible Plastic Fund in the UK. www.flexibleplasticfund.org.uk

On a local scale, around our Liverpool HQ in the UK, we’ve worked with Sefton Council and South Liverpool Food Bank as part of our colleague engagement and volunteering activities. Vitaflo continue to actively broaden our connections to sustainability initiatives in our community that need our support.

Vitaflo has helped support local schools and community groups by offering financial bursaries to support Sustainability Initiatives. If you would like to learn more about how you can apply for a bursary please email sustainability@vitaflo.co.uk

- We’re proud to have taken a number of sustainability actions to date.

Please read the sustainability articles on our website for more information on the steps we have made as a business towards a sustainable future.

If you feel your organisation would benefit from some willing Vitaflo volunteers, or would like more information on our volunteering programme or our bursary offering , please contact us at sustainability@vitaflo.co.uk