The LEGO Group is continuing its ongoing endeavor to phase out single-use plastic from its packaging and replace it with sustainable, recyclable paper. This process started this year in Europe and Asia and will start rolling out in the Americas next year.
“Phasing out single-use plastic from our products has been very important to us as this material is rarely recycled, unlike paper-based bags,” says Tim Brooks, Vice President of Environmental Responsibility at The LEGO Group. “We committed to doing this three years ago and have faced a number of technical challenges to find a bag that would not compromise the high standards LEGO fans expect from us. It’s been a true team effort to arrive at this exciting moment and we’re very proud to see the paper-based bag rollout gain real momentum.”
Designers faced difficulties in designing paper pre-pack bags that could withstand the manufacturing process and frequent changes in humidity and weather.
“More than 350 LEGO colleagues came together to solve this important challenge and what they have achieved is incredible,” Brooks says. “It has not been easy to balance the importance of the building experience, the quality of the product, and the engineering and production challenges with the urgent need to be more sustainable. We look forward to hearing what our fans think when they open their first paper-based pre-pack bag.”
LEGO is also replacing the plastic cups at Pick-A-Brick walls at LEGO stores with recyclable cardboard boxes. These boxes take up less space than their previous counterparts and will start hitting stores next month through next year. Collectible minifigure packaging will also make the switch from single-use plastic to cardboard boxes.
In September, The LEGO Group announced plans to spend more than $1.4 billion on sustainability efforts over the next three years.
