Avery Dennison Labels and Packaging Materials (LPM) announces its partnership with Tosca, a global leader in reusable plastic packaging and pooling solutions for the supply chain, aiming to switch a substantial portion of its product distribution across the continent to plastic pallets with a goal to save over 800 tons of CO2 emissions from its European supply chain annually.

Plastic pallets have many advantages. Since they are more durable than their wooden counterparts they can be re-used more often and are less prone to breakages which can help reduce the risk of damage and waste in the supply chain. In fact, Tosca estimates that its plastic pallets can be used over a 100 times and at end of life, are recycled.

The collaboration with Tosca will cover the distribution of materials from Avery Dennison factories and distribution centers across the EU as well as the UK, Norway, Switzerland, and Turkey.

Deployments will gradually phase in over the course of the next year. The agreement allows Avery Dennison’s network of partners to also join the pooling program under favorable terms to cover the onward freight of finished materials to brands and other end users.

The first plastic pallet test in the Avery Dennison distribution center in Milan.

Tosca operates a pooling model and delivers clean empty pallets from its service centers located across Europe, to Avery Dennison sites. The service is fully managed with pallets inspected and washed after every rotation by Tosca.

At the end of every year, Avery Dennison and its customers that take part in the pooling program will receive a CO2 emissions reduction certificate.

Tosca predicts that Avery Dennison alone could save 819 tons of CO2 emissions annually by switching all its Euro-sized wooden pallets (1200x800mm) to Tosca.

The pooling program has been trialed for almost 1 year for shipments from Avery Dennison distribution center in Dublin to customers in Ireland.

Violeta Gómez, Central Packaging Leader at Avery Dennison, commented, “The pooling program has been a massive success in Ireland and is helping us to reduce our carbon footprint and eliminate waste within the supply chain. Customers appreciate the fact that plastic pallets offer standard quality: they are cleaner (dust-free) and with less risk of damaging their products.”

Gómez continued, “Avery Dennison’s and Tosca’s plastic pallet pooling vision doesn’t stop after the pallets arrive to the customer. We encourage customers to take the chance to extend the pooling program further down the supply chain to end-users and help grow the eco system further.”

Felix Van Ouytsel, Business Development Manager at Tosca, said, “Tosca provides solutions that enable companies across the world to eliminate wasted materials, miles, space and labor to make the entire supply chain more sustainable. As the largest pooler of plastic pallets in Europe, we deliver a combination of reusable products, a flexible global service network and a committed partnership which will benefit Avery Dennison and its customers.”