Sinclair’s senior marketing manager Duncan Jones explains why effective communication with customers and consumers is key to adoption of the new Sinclair-T55 compostable sticker
How has uptake of your new home and industrial-certified compostable label, the Sinclair-T55, been?
Since its launch in October 2024, over 200 Sinclair customers have adopted the T55, either completely or partially. Zespri has moved all its labelled kiwifruit over to the Sinclair-T55 label.
A lot of producers see synergy with their organic ranges and the excellent end-of-life performance of T55, which safely decomposes to become part of soil-enriching compost.
In England, only about 40 per cent of what you put in your home recycling bin is likely to get recycled, according to government figures, whereas when you dispose of a home-compostable label in home compost, there’s no additional waste stream sorting and no mechanical processing required.
The Sinclair-T55 breaks down in a similar manner to natural organic matter, leaving behind only inorganic carbon, minerals, salts, and trace amounts of calcium and magnesium. There is no adverse toxicity to plants, wildlife or the soil around it.
How are you educating customers and consumers about the Sinclair-T55?
It’s our job to make sure the industry understands the T55’s benefits as an environmentally conscious packaging choice. We need to ensure our messaging is clear, simple and consumer-focused so they can easily understand the benefits and which waste stream to place the T55 label in.
In an ideal world, our job would be made easier if legislation in the EU and UK required every fruit label to be home-compostable. This won’t be the reality for a while, and in the meantime, we need our customers and retailers to support the compostable label narrative and help build awareness of its environmentally conscious credentials.
It falls to us to communicate that our label is compostable and to support our customers. This is a challenge with such a small sticker, but we’re looking at some options.
We also have to think about how we display the relevant compostable certification, for example, TÜV Austria OK compost. If a customer decides to make a home compostable claim on the PLU sticker, it must carry our OK compost license reference to validate the claim. That’s important because it prevents greenwashing and builds trust, but this can quite challenging depending on the fruit sticker size.
Have you seen a move away from selling loose, labelled fruit and vegetables in the UK?
Since Covid, there has been a lot more pre-packed fruit. Recent research from Wrap suggests that loose fruit is more appealing to consumers. In the UK, it’s currently very hard to find individual fruit, but supermarkets are evaluating the option to sell more loose fresh produce again. For example, Aldi trialled 12 new loose fruit and veg lines at stores in the north of England in November.
I would imagine there’s always going to be a place for fruit labelling. Retailers like it because it ensures accurate checkout and traceability, and brands love it because they spend lots of money promoting their fresh produce and ensuring consistent quality and taste. They want their product to have an identity at point of sale so consumers can differentiate it from other fresh produce. Selling loose fruit also helps with reducing food waste.
Labelling is an agile packaging choice that requires very little packaging! We offer labels measuring anywhere from 10-81mm, and special-shaped labels which help our customers apply their brand and be creative in the way they want present their product.
Which fruits do you label the most?
The commodity we label the most is apples, but pears, citrus, and kiwifruit are not far behind. We also label exotics and many vegetables. There is always a new fresh produce commodity to label. Recently we have been asked to look at fennel, and in the past (in China) we have also labelled eggs!
Is Sinclair expanding in any particular markets?
Greece has recently been developing as more kiwifruit growers invest there. And in many other markets we remain competitive and stable.
Legislation on single-use plastic is a growth driver in the EU, but also a challenge. A ban on single-use plastic is some way off being mandated and it is not 100 per cent clear how it will be implemented yet.
Asia is still an opportunity. For example, this year we’re working in Vietnam and Korea, and we already have business in Bangkok and China, providing a strong foundation.
