Stella & Chewy’s Transitions to Recyclable Packaging

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Press release: Stella & Chewy’s

Stella & Chewy’s, a leader in the premium pet food industry, has begun the transition to recyclable packaging, with the objective of providing education and convenient recycling solutions to help make the world a greener place. Stella & Chewy’s will roll out the new packaging with two of their most popular products: Chewy’s Chicken Frozen Raw Patties and Carnivore Crunch.

The amount of how much pet food packaging that ends up in landfills is staggering. At the recent Global Pet Expo, American Pets Products Association announced that in 2019, Americans spent $95.7 billion on their pets, with $36.7 billion spent on food and treats – a 7% increase from 2018, and the APPA projects a 4% increase in 2020. Additionally, $36.7 billion worth of pet packaging has to end up somewhere, and petfoodindustry.com reports 99% of flexible (bags) packaging in the United States ends up in landfills.

“The brand loyalty of Stella & Chewy’s is something we are very proud of, and that loyalty continues because we listen to our pet parents,” said Marc Hill, CEO, Stella & Chewy’s, “and those parents have made it clear they want our exceptional product quality to carry over to environmentally friendly packaging. As a company, we share this passion for change.”

Transitioning food-related packaging to sustainable packaging is complex and the company has spent the last few years researching options that meet their high standards for food safety and quality. The new packaging will continue to be a barrier bag (designed to protect contents from outside elements), have a shinier look – same Stella & Chewy’s colors and design – and will have the How2Recycle label on the upper right corner. One packaging change: scissors will be needed to open the bag because of the stretchy nature of the new material.

“We are happy to report that our product pricing will remain the same, which we know will make our customers happy, and hopefully attract other pet parents that want to feed their dogs and cats the highest quality of food while also being conscious of the environment,” said Hill.

Like with all recycling methods, the consumer will need to do some research. The new packaging will be a recyclable #4 (LDPE: low-density polyethylene, which can be found in squeezable condiment bottles, frozen food bags and produce bags) or recyclable #2 (HDPE: high-density polyethylene found in milk jugs and laundry detergent bottles). Consumers should check with their municipality/community to determine what recycling numbers are accepted with curbside pickup in their area.

The Stella & Chewy’s packaging with the How2Recycle label can also be dropped off in select stores to be recycled. Visit the How2Recycle website to find participating locations.

“Thirty-three percent of pet food consumers have purchased one product over another or stopped purchasing a product based on the environmental record of its manufacturer. We only see that number increasing, and we’re going to make sure our products continue to meet those expectations,” said Hill.