• Eliminates over 1,300 metric tons of virgin plastic annually.
• Supports a circular economy by increasing recycled plastic use.
• Strengthens Mars’ commitment to sustainable packaging redesign.

Berry Global and Mars are rolling out 100% recycled plastic packaging for M&M’S®, SKITTLES®, and STARBURST® pantry jars—excluding lids. This move builds on their 2022 launch, which incorporated 15% recycled content.

Why it matters:

The shift significantly reduces plastic waste, lowers emissions, and advances circular economy efforts by repurposing post-consumer resin (PCR) from curbside collection streams. The updated 60-, 81-, and 87-ounce jars are widely recyclable, helping consumers participate in sustainability.

Peter Goshorn, VP at Berry Global, emphasized the importance of scaling up recycled materials: “As companies commit to transitioning to a circular economy, the ability to deliver products made with recycled materials at scale is crucial.”

Mars has been working with Berry since 2017 to innovate sustainable packaging. The company’s Sustainable Packaging Plan aims to reduce plastic use and ensure all packaging is reusable, recyclable, or compostable.

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Allison Lin, Global VP of Packaging Sustainability at Mars, highlighted the broader impact: “Reducing our virgin plastic usage by investing in recycled content is an important step, alongside initiatives to remove unnecessary packaging, explore reuse models, and redesign for circularity.”

This initiative aligns with Mars’ ongoing efforts to redesign 12,000 packaging components and invest in better recycling infrastructure, reinforcing its vision of a future where packaging waste is eliminated.

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