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Nestlé says it aims to reduce virgin plastic use by 12% to 17% by 2030, measured against 2018, through recycled materials, less plastic packaging, and reuse or refill options. The company expects recycled content to provide 50% to 60% of the planned improvement; reuse and refill accounted for only 0.51% of its packaging in 2025.
Nestlé has outlined a plan to reduce its use of virgin plastic by 12% to 17% by 2030, compared with 2018, in a packaging sustainability strategy published this month. The food and beverage company expects recycled plastic to account for most of the planned improvement, with reductions in packaging and reuse or refill options making up the rest.
The strategy divides the planned reduction among three approaches. Nestlé expects 50% to 60% of the improvement to come from incorporating more recycled plastic, 30% to 40% from reducing or eliminating plastic, and 10% to 15% from alternative materials or reuse and refill solutions. These are the company’s estimates of how it will reach the target, not reported results already achieved.
Nestlé reported that plastic packaging contained about 21% recycled content in 2025. It says it is researching the food safety of recycled plastics to support wider use of recycled PET. Separately, the company reported total plastic packaging use of 0.86 million metric tons in 2025, down from 1.7 million metric tons in 2018. That measure covers total plastic packaging, while the new target concerns virgin plastic use.
Plastic represented about a quarter of Nestlé’s packaging portfolio by weight in 2025. The company cited paper substitutions, including replacing plastic laminates with paper in Nescafé paper soft packs in Europe. It also joined five other founding members of the Ellen MacArthur Foundation’s PaperFlex Consortium, which aims to advance research and development for paper-based flexible packaging. Nestlé describes reuse and refill approaches as largely still in the pilot stage; reusable packaging made up 0.51% of its packaging in 2025.
Where the Planned Cuts Will Come From
The plan sets out how Nestlé expects to pursue a narrower packaging goal after its earlier emphasis on making packaging recyclable, compostable or reusable. The company said it had achieved that status for about 90% of its portfolio. That figure describes packaging design or end-of-life attributes; it does not mean that 90% was actually recycled, composted or reused.
The balance of the new plan matters because Nestlé’s largest expected contribution, recycled plastic, depends on obtaining material that meets its requirements for food packaging. Its research on recycled PET food safety is one part of that effort. The other approaches carry different practical constraints: reducing plastic involves changing packaging formats, while reuse and refill require systems that remain in early stages, according to the strategy.
The target also gives investors, suppliers and packaging partners a stated direction for the company’s work through 2030. But the range of 12% to 17% leaves room for a five percentage-point difference in the intended reduction. Nestlé says the target takes into account its planned sale of a stake in its water business for approximately $3.4 billion, a factor that could affect the company’s packaging portfolio.
From Broad Packaging Goals to Virgin Plastic
Before 2025, Nestlé emphasized goals including making all its packaging recyclable, compostable or reusable. It reported reaching that status for about 90% of its portfolio, then shifted its stated focus to reducing virgin plastic. The new goal uses 2018 as its baseline, allowing progress to be compared with the year the target specifies.
The company’s reported total plastic packaging use fell from 1.7 million metric tons in 2018 to 0.86 million in 2025. This is a change in total plastic packaging use, not a direct measure of the new virgin-plastic target. Recycled content and total packaging volume can affect virgin plastic use, but the figures describe distinct measures.
Nestlé’s paper packaging work forms part of the reduction and elimination category in its strategy. Paper-based flexible packaging can replace some plastic formats, although the source report does not give a projected tonnage reduction from the Nescafé packs or the PaperFlex Consortium’s work. The strategy also identifies at-home refill products as an opportunity, while describing reuse and refill models as mostly at the pilot stage.
How Much Progress Will Be Measured
The strategy describes a 12% to 17% target range, but the available report does not specify where within that range Nestlé expects to land or provide annual milestones. It also does not set out in the source material how much of the planned improvement each named packaging project will deliver.
The company’s estimate that recycled plastic will account for 50% to 60% of improvement does not resolve how much suitable recycled material will be available, or when its research into food safety will support broader use of recycled PET. The strategy gives no detailed results from that research. It is also unclear how Nestlé will track the effect of its planned water-business stake sale against the 2018 baseline.
The 2025 figure for reusable packaging is a reported share of total packaging, but the source does not describe the measurement method or set out a numerical 2030 goal for reuse and refill. The status of those initiatives remains largely pilot-stage according to Nestlé’s strategy.
Tracking the 2030 Packaging Target
Nestlé’s stated deadline is 2030. Progress will depend on expanding recycled plastic use, cutting or replacing plastic packaging, and developing reuse or refill options beyond pilots. The company’s packaging strategy identifies these routes but, in the material reported, does not provide a year-by-year schedule for them.
Further progress reports would clarify changes in virgin plastic use against the 2018 baseline, recycled content levels, and the scale of packaging reductions. Nestlé’s research on recycled PET and work with the PaperFlex Consortium may also provide more detail on the technical and commercial steps behind the plan. The timing and results of those developments have not been specified in the source report.
Key Questions
What is Nestlé’s 2030 virgin plastic target?
Nestlé aims to reduce virgin plastic use by 12% to 17% by 2030, compared with its 2018 baseline.
How does Nestlé plan to reduce virgin plastic?
The company plans to use more recycled plastic, reduce or eliminate plastic packaging, and expand alternative materials, reuse and refill solutions. It expects recycled plastic to deliver 50% to 60% of the planned improvement.
How much recycled content did Nestlé report in 2025?
Nestlé reported that its plastic packaging had about 21% recycled content in 2025.
How much of Nestlé’s packaging was reusable in 2025?
The company reported that reusable packaging accounted for 0.51% of its packaging in 2025. Its strategy describes reuse and refill models as largely still in the pilot stage.
Source: rss
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