British multinational packaging firm DS Smith has replaced over 313 million pieces of problem plastics in the past two years through innovative design, the company claims.

The figures work out to more than three million units per week as consumers demonstrate a preference for fibre-based packaging. 

DS Smith has created solutions to get rid of plastic items, such as ready-meal trays, plastic fruit and vegetable punnets and plastic six pack rings. 

Samantha Upham, Sustainability Business Partner – Sales, Marketing & Innovation commented: “With our help, customers are accelerating their ambitions to remove problem plastics from their products. By using our Circular Design Metrics, we can easily show not just where plastic can be replaced, but how circular their packaging is right now and where we can make improvements together.

“All 700 of our designers have been trained in our Circular Design Principles, which means we can design out problem plastics at inception stage and find alternative fibre-based solutions which deliver the required attributes.”

DS Smith plans to further adopt fibre-based alternatives over the next year to meet growing consumer demand for plastic alternatives. 

According to a recent survey commissioned by DS Smith, 4 in 10 customers preferred packaging made from renewable sources. 

The company is aiming to remove one billion pieces of problem plastics from its products  as part of its Now & Next sustainability targets . 

DS Smith’s plastic replacement work and wider sustainability progress can be found in its latest sustainability report which can be found here.