Plant based cartons

The purpose of changing the way that our milk was packaged was to improve our environmental impact and find a sustainable and renewable way of getting our grass fed, Manx milk to our consumers. 

Plant-based cartons are made primarily of wood-based board which is sourced from The Forest Stewardship Council certified forests. This means that the materials used are both renewable and sustainable and this is independently audited. The plastic elements of the cartons are made from sugar cane. This sugar cane is sourced from Brazil and is grown on degraded or pre-farmed pasture ensuring that there is no encroachment on natural habitats.

We were hopeful that Manx consumers would see the benefits of purchasing milk packed into these more environmentally friendly cartons and switch from the single use plastic bottles which are also available. During the time since the new cartons were introduced, we have seen a massive shift in buying habits. In August 2018 70% of consumers were buying Isle of Man Creamery milk in single use plastic bottles by August 2019 that had shifted to 80% of customers buying their milk in plant-based cartons. 

In November 2021 we completely eliminated single-use plastic bottles from our milk packaging with the introduction of a 1.75 litre and 2 litre plant-based carton. 

Two and four pint plastic bottles have been discontinued and the new larger, better value cartons will replace them allowing customers to buy more milk with less packaging!

By eliminating plastic bottles from our milk packaging we have saved the Isle of Man 100 tonnes of plastic every year and reduced the number of articulated lorries coming to the Island by 30 each year.