Kraft Heinz installed new roofs made of recycled plastic packaging on manufacturing facilities in Beaver Dam, Wis., and Holland, Mich., in late 2020, according to www.constructiondive.com. The company plans to monitor the performance of the recycled material compared with conventional building materials and hopes to standardize its use if the test goes well.
The recycled roof boards are 4 feet by 8 feet, and 94% of each board is made from post-consumer plastic and fiber. The company did not indicate how much of its factories’ roofs have been covered in the recycled boards.
It is unclear how much flexible packaging Kraft Heinz uses for its products each year; statistics on the company’s website show about 30% of its packaging as of 2019 fell into the nonrecyclable category, including flexible plastic films or rigid plastic containers.
If the pilot project is successful, Kraft Heinz potentially could renovate its factories with its own post-consumer waste, which would have a significant effect. The company has 81 manufacturing facilities worldwide and owns all but three. It also could help popularize the reuse of plastic packaging, as well as lead to improvements in the strength, weatherproofing and longevity of the roofing material.
