Auchan chooses FSC™-labelled Tetra Pak packages to launch French mountain milk

Tetra Gemina™ Aseptic packages from Tetra Pak provide top retailer with environmental, consumer and shelf benefits

Auchan, one of the world’s top retailers, has chosen an innovative package from Tetra Pak to launch a new, store brand milk produced by small, local dairies located in the mountainous Massif Central region in central France. The choice of the Forest Stewardship Council™ (FSC)-certified Tetra Gemina™ Aseptic package underscores Auchan’s commitment as a socially responsible discount retailer.

The Tetra Gemina Aseptic, a new generation of Tetra Pak packages, touts both environmental advantages as well as consumer and shelf benefits. The FSC label ensures consumers that all the wood fibres used to make the package comes from well managed forests and controlled sources. As other Tetra Pak packages, the Tetra Gemina Aseptic is recyclable and more than 60% of the packaging material used in its production comes from renewable sources. In addition, its format, weight, transportation, storage and distribution systems means high efficiency in reducing energy consumption, storage space and an overall lower CO2 impact than several alternative packaging solutions.

“This environmentally sound package is a perfect fit for our French Mountain Milk. It protects the flavour and nutritional qualities of this wholesome product and thus helps in our efforts to support small dairy farmers who have difficulty surviving because their remote location makes access and collection a challenge,” said Jean-Pierre Baillivet, Auchan’s Fresh Food Products Group Manager. The company has been actively promoting cooperative milk collection among small dairies in order to preserve milk production in the area"

In addition to its environmental attributes, the Tetra Gemina Aseptic provides consumers with excellent functionality thanks to its slim distinctive shape and the wide screw cap on its pitched slanted roof. Customers and retailers benefit from strong shelf-impact and the advantages of ambient distribution, at a competitive cost.

Thanks to Tetra Pak’s ambient processing and packaging process, milk retains all its nutritional value and can be transported and remain on the shelf for at least six months without the need for refrigeration or preservatives.

ABOUT AUCHAN
The Auchan Group is the world's 12th largest food retailer, operates in 13 countries and employs 210,000 people. The Group is structured into the 4 core businesses of hypermarkets (500 stores), supermarkets (745 stores), retail real estate (Immochan) and banking (Banque Accord). In 2009, the Group reported pre-tax sales of www.groupe-auchan.com

ABOUT FSC CERTIFICATION
The Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) is an international organization that brings people together to find solutions which promote responsible stewardship of the world’s forests. It is the only global standard setting organization in forest management.

The FSC system independently guarantees a chain of custody from forest to stores. Achieving the FSC certification enables Tetra Pak to use the FSC label on its packages and is a guarantee that all wood-fibre used in the manufacturing process comes from FSC certified well-managed forests and other controlled sources

The FSC license code for Tetra Pak is FSC-C14047
More information about FSC is available at www.fsc.org

For more information please contact:

Tetra Pak, Linda Bernier, +39 348 145 4229