ZINDA NEWS & MEDIA

For too long, the big players in the world of retail have been making sweeping statements about their commitment to reducing their carbon footprints, decreasing waste and dedicating more resources to making their corner of the planet greener and cleaner. Yet here we are, amid a very real climate crisis, and what has changed? The devastating answer: not much.

Removing plastic packaging:

With a third of all plastic waste produced in the EU being sent straight to landfill, it’s becoming more and more difficult to ignore that sense of guilt when buying a meal deal contained in 100% non-recyclable packaging. Images of plastic containers floating from landfill mountains down to dying coral reefs have made it impossible for us to continue to turn our backs on the waste that we produce.

At Zinda Foods, we’ve committed to doing our part in helping to tackle this problem head on, by pioneering the first example of 100% compostable food-to-go packaging used in the UK.

We have implemented a 2-stage process of cutting out our current PET trays that hold our wraps up. Stage 1 includes a shift to a recyclable paper tray. Stage 2 will introduce our bespoke bagasse tray (made from sugar cane waste) which is home compostable. This is a very exciting turning point for us and (hopefully) for the rest of the country. The way we see it, if a relatively small company like Zinda Foods can introduce sustainable, compostable packaging, then other larger food-to-go companies should be able to do the same.

No unnecessary ingredients:

Whilst developing our plastic-free containers, one issue we came across was ensuring our AirWraps retained their freshness for an appropriate amount of time. We’ve chosen to sacrifice a longer shelf life in order to retain the fresh, natural taste that we’ve become known for. We’ve done this by continuing to work only with natural ingredients that you’d find at home.

 As the graphic below shows, the number of additives and other non-essential (and often unhealthy) ingredients found in classic, store-bought tortillas is massive compared to AirWraps. It is not always necessary to list palm oil as an ingredient when it is used in its hydrogenated form (as it often is in tortillas), so to avoid confusion, we’ve chosen to be completely transparent with our customers about the five simple ingredients in our AirWraps: wheat flour, sunflower oil, sugar, salt and water – that’s it!

 Reducing our carbon footprint:

Of course, there are other current, pressing issues which have also led us to omitting palm oil from our AirWraps. Vast areas of tropical forests are cleared daily to make room for huge palm oil plantations across South Asia. The clearing of these forests has all but destroyed the habitats of many endangered species – orangutans, tigers, rhinos and elephants. Burning forests to make room for palm oil crops is also a huge cause of greenhouse gas emissions, soil erosion and water contamination.

 Despite organisations like WWF and Greenpeace drawing attention to the devastating effects of palm oil production, consumption is still, sadly, increasing at an alarming rate. It is imperative that more attention is brought towards the information collected by these organisations so that we, as consumers, understand the importance of choosing products which contain more sustainable alternatives.

 In the meantime, Zinda Foods stands proudly with the small number of brands who say no to palm oil and plastic packaging. We know that this is a huge and complex issue, with many moving parts, but at Zinda Foods we are truly committed to doing our part in reducing our carbon footprint, tackling plastic waste, and ultimately cleaning up the food-to-go industry.