Coop Denmark eliminates six million screw caps annually to reduce plastic waste

Coop Denmark, a leader in responsible retail, is setting new standards for sustainability in the food industry. The company has recently announced a transformation in its packaging for yoghurt and Ymer, a traditional Danish sour milk product. Rolling out from January 2025 these products under the Coop own brand are offered in beverage cartons without screw caps.

This strategic move marks more than just a packaging change — it’s a decisive step toward sustainability. By introducing the Pure-Pak® cartons with Natural Brown Board and eliminating the plastic screw caps, Coop Denmark is bidding farewell to approximately six million screw caps every year. This bold decision translates directly into an impressive reduction in environmental impact, saving 17 tons of plastic and 48 tons of CO₂ emissions annually.

The launch in Denmark, reinforces Coop’s commitment to sustainability. With this initiative, the company is not only addressing consumer demand for eco-friendly packaging but is also setting an example for other manufacturers and retailers to follow.

The Pure-Pak® carton uses renewable materials, minimizes plastic use, and retains the practicality of the ‘easy opening feature’, ensuring that consumers don’t have to compromise on convenience while making sustainable choices.

Sustainable milk packaging

Coop Denmark’s transition underscores the crucial role of packaging in the global effort to reduce plastic waste and carbon emissions. By switching to the Pure-Pak® cartons with Natural Brown Board and forgoing millions of plastic caps each year, the company demonstrates how small design changes can have a major impact on sustainability.

In 2024, the Coop removed the tethered screw caps on the most sold milk types from its Änglamark and 365 Øko brands in collaboration with Thise Mejeri. Coop continues to remove screw caps from cartons, thereby reducing plastic consumption with the roll out of the yoghurt and Ymer products beginning early in 2025.

Thomas Roland, head of product responsibility and quality, says:
“The EU has decided that all plastic lids on drink bottles and cartons must be fixed to avoid the lids ending up in nature. But we know that many customers find the tethered caps cumbersome. At the same time, we want to save plastic, so now we are again removing lids on many cartons, thereby saving large amounts of plastic and CO2 for the benefit of the environment.”