If you’ve gotten a Blue Apron box recently, you’ve probably had the experience of pouring a melted ice pack down your sink.
It might seem like a small detail, but at Blue Apron, we’re proud of our gel packs. In 2019, we became the first meal kit company to introduce drain safe, fully recyclable gel packs (developed in partnership with Nordic Ice). Our packs were so impressive that we received the 2019 Packaging Innovation Award from Dow.
These award-winning gel packs replaced our old polymer ice packs. The polymer version worked well, but it wasn’t recyclable. We’re always looking for opportunities to improve the sustainability of our product, and we knew the ice packs had to be tweaked. The current version is water-based, and the contents can be safely drained down the sink. Once emptied, the plastic exterior can be recycled via in-store drop off (tip: use How2Recycle to find your closest drop off).
We estimate that switching to drain safe gel packs saves approximately 7,624,768 gallons of water per year based on 2019 data. That’s roughly the equivalent of 11.5 Olympic swimming pools!
Learn more about our commitment to sustainability here.
