Aqua d’Or takes the next step towards circularity by launching the 1st bottle made of 100% recycled PET in Denmark by April 2019

Aqua d'Or commits to have all their bottles made from 100% recycled material by 2021 and, in addition, aims to collect and recover 100% of the material that is being used for bottles by 2022.

We are convinced that water is the healthiest form of hydration. In the Nordics we are fortunate to have clean tap water. As a producer of natural mineral water our reason to exist is more to offer a healthy choice in all moments of beverage consumption.

Aqua d’Or is a premium Danish natural mineral water that has been sourced deep underneath the Jutland heath, and every drop has been filtered through the ground for over 300 years.

"Our packaging is essential in our mission to provide people with high-quality natural mineral water and healthy water-based beverages. The packaging protects the nutritional benefits and quality of our products and allows them to be stored, transported and used safely.

The delivery of our mineral water cannot come at the expense of the planet's health and resources. We want to protect the planet’s resources, and our approach to packaging plays an important role in this everlasting work," says Pierre Stevens, General Manager Aqua d’Or.

"Denmark has a well- functioning system when it comes to plastic bottles, and nine out of ten bottles are in fact recycled. However, there is still an important job to be done to ensure that the tenth bottle gets back in the loop, and that eventually we can close that loop.

We believe that the journey towards circularity for plastics must be driven together with partners, NGOs, governments, institutions and together with consumers. At Aqua d’Or we want to act as a game changer to be a pioneering reference - accelerating the transition towards circular economy for packaging," says Henrik Pasgaard, Marketing Director Aqua d'Or.

At Aqua d’Or we want to pioneer the water category and therefore we commit to:

• have all Aqua d’Or bottles made from 100% recycled material by 2021
• collect and recover 100% of the material that is being used for Aqua d’Or bottles by 2022

"We believe PET can be a valuable resource. We are able to source qualitative recycled PET and use it for new bottles thanks to all the Danish consumers who recycle their bottles at a large scale.

For several years our priority has been to find solutions for a more sustainable packaging that does not contribute further to fossil sourcing and to drive the development towards a circular economy for plastic bottles," says Henrik Pasgaard, Marketing Director Aqua d’Or.

100% recycled PET

Today all Aqua d’Or bottles are made of 50% recycled PET and are designed for circularity, meaning they are 100% recyclable. We will take the next step towards circularity by launching our first Aqua d’Or bottle made of 100% recycled PET in April 2019.

We will increase the amount of recycled PET and use recycled material in our full portfolio of Aqua d’Or bottles by 2021. We will work closely together with our partners in establishing groundbreaking technologies that enable a continuous loop for recycling at large scale, where used and recovered plastics becomes new and highly qualitative PET.

“We are extremely happy to finally launch the first bottle on the market made of 100% rPET. This will allow us to move away from fossil sourced virgin plastics and in addition to reduce our CO2 emissions with as much as fifty percent," says Henrik Pasgaard, Marketing Director, Aqua d’Or.

Local collection, engaging consumers

Nine out of ten bottles are recycled in Denmark. We will further engage consumers to make sure that the tenth bottle is returned at local level. We need our consumers' help in order to be able to source recycled PET.

We want to inspire consumers to recycle even more, raising knowledge about circularity as a way to change how to think about plastic usage and waste. At Aqua d’Or we will continue to strongly cooperate with Danish Return System (DRS) and other strategic partners to identify areas of improvement and initiate efforts that will positively impact the circular economy of plastics.

Collecting plastic waste through global initiatives

The strong need to reduce plastic waste is not just a local Danish matter. It has to be seen as a global matter. We aim to collect plastic waste and establish collection centers in polluted areas. Since 2009, through the Danone Ecosystem Fund, Danone supports locally-led collection initiatives with positive social, economic and environmental impact.

Aqua d’Or will invest into a socially inclusive recycling project in an area that needs support to combat high leakage of plastic into the environment, with the aim to further stimulate the circular economy beyond Denmark's borders.