Whole Foods announced yesterday that it has implemented new responsible packaging guidelines for more than 2,100 body care and supplement products suppliers nationwide, after working for a full year to develop the program with their 25 largest body care suppliers.

Beginning in the summer of 2008, Whole Foods global whole-body coordinator, Jeremiah McElwee, led the team who worked to develop the new guidelines that became effective one year ago. Current suppliers have had one year to comply with the new packaging requirements, while new suppliers have had to meet all guidelines before their products can be sold in any Whole Foods outlet.

The rules mandate that suppliers must reduce the amount of plastic in product packaging, use glass packaging where possible, limit materials used to those which are easily recyclable through municipal systems and feature high amounts of post-consumer recycled content.

To spearhead the change, Whole Foods has switched to post-consumer recycled (PCR) content bottles for several of its store-brand supplements and body care products. While the switch to PCR bottles began last Sept., the company expects to switch all of its house-brand Whole Body products, which now use amber plastic PET No. 1 bottles, to PCR packaging by late 2010.

Reprinted with permission from Sustainable Life Media