The Compleat Food Group, one of the UK’s leading food manufacturers, has achieved a significant milestone in its sustainability journey by removing plastic trays from its pork pie packaging.
The initiative, which spans both branded and own-label products, is set to reduce plastic use by 110 tonnes annually. The group produces an estimated 200 million pork pies annually under its own label and through its portfolio of brands, which include Pork Farms, Wall’s Pastry, and Wrights.
The rollout is part of the company’s aim to reduce its environmental impact while maintaining food quality and safety. Following a substantial investment in automation equipment at its Tottle site, the company implemented a new, innovative trayless packaging process, which eliminates 75 per cent of the plastic previously used in high-volume pork pie packs. This is expected to result in a carbon saving of approximately 430 tonnes of CO2 equivalent each year.
“Our move to trayless packaging for pork pies is a prime example of how innovation and investment can drive meaningful sustainability improvements. While the automation required careful consideration of speed and efficiency, the result is a significant reduction in plastic use without compromising on product quality or freshness,” David Moore, head of ESG at The Compleat Food Group, said.
“This marks a huge step forward in our efforts to reduce plastic packaging across our portfolio, supporting our wider purpose to make food to feel good, taste good and do good.”
In addition to the trayless packaging initiative, The Compleat Food Group is driving innovation in flexible films, a material that remains a key challenge for the food industry due to the lack of collection and recycling infrastructure. The group is transitioning to mono-material films for specific product packaging, such as chorizo. These films can be recycled through supermarket collection points and are expected to be kerbside recyclable from 2027.
A signatory of WRAP’s UK Plastics Pact, The Compleat Food Group said it is committed to addressing the challenges of packaging by removing unnecessary materials, increasing the use of recycled content, and improving recyclability. The company uses over 4,000 tonnes of plastic annually and has a clear strategy to reduce this figure through targeted innovations, while maintaining product quality and freshness.
The company’s broader ESG goals include exploring new packaging solutions, trialling recyclable alternatives, and embedding sustainability across its operations. Recent achievements include replacing rPET plastic trays with recyclable paper-based board in its Squeaky Bean range, cutting plastic use in that range by 82 per cent.
Panel discussion at the relaunch of the SAITG on 3 March 2025
