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Tempest in an egg carton
March 4, 2009

Paper or plastic? Or in this case, molded-pulp or polystyrene-foam packaging for your eggs? That's the question that's created a bit of a tiff between the Spartan Store grocery chain and its long-time egg-carton supplier Dolco Packaging.

As the nation's 10th-largest grocery distributor, Spartan has 100 retail stores in Michigan and Ohio under the D&W Fresh Markets, Family Fare Supermarkets, Felpausch Food Centers, Glen’s Markets and VG's Food and Pharmacy banners. Back in January, Spartan Stores replaced expanded-polystyrene (EPS) cartons for its Spartan brand eggs with molded-fiber cartons, touting them as more "Earth-friendly" on several levels, i.e.: 100% recyclable and biodegradable; offering better cushioning; and a "green alternative to plastic."

This didn't sit well with Dolco. It fired back yesterday with its own press-release rebuttal. "The subtitle claim, 'Cartons made of molded fiber are environmentally friendly' is suspect, given the results of an actual third-party Life Cycle study on the issue," the release reads. Dolco then goes down the list of eco-friendly claims by Spartan, debunking each one.

Dolco concludes: "...the decision to convert to molded-pulp egg packaging does not lead to positive environmental results. In fact, this change has resulted in heavier shipping loads that may translate to less quantities shipped per load of eggs. Also, more travel distance from carton manufacturing facility to the egg supplier has been added to the program, adding CO2 emissions. And lastly, US jobs have been forsaken to support a Canadian supplier."

Boy, that last one's a killer, especially right now.

Is it all just a tempest in an egg carton? No. It's a lesson that should be taken by all converters and their customers. Namely, if you're not well-armed with the facts to support your "green claims," be prepared to face the wrath of those who are.

Posted by Mark Spaulding on March 4, 2009 | Comments (0)