DS Smith, a manufacturer of fibre-based packaging, has helped achieve a 78% reduction in plastic for the new Jacob’s Cream Crackers packaging.  

This initiative is part of Smith's collaboration with global snacking company pladis, aiming to deliver sustainable, tamperproof packaging with high-impact branding via its design team. 

Pladis sought Smith’s expertise to revamp Jacob’s Crackers Selection pack, prioritising the reduction of plastic waste without compromising the tamperproof seal. 

The redesigned packaging is claimed to have resulted in carbon dioxide (CO₂) savings of more than 373,248kg to date.  

Jacob’s Cream Crackers, with the updated packaging, is now available on retail shelves. 

Smith change manager Paul Bridge was quoted by Retail Times as saying: “Now more than ever, consumers are concerned about the amount of plastic in their packaging. We were delighted to work with pladis on new packaging for their iconic Jacob’s Cream Crackers.  

“By applying our unique Circular Design Metrics [CDM], we came up with a solution that ensured that we ended up with a finished product that had 78% less plastic, while retaining the same high-quality print as the previous packaging. 

“The new design is already on-shelf, and we’ve taken the learnings from the project to see how we can apply them to future solutions we work on.” 

Smith's CDM, introduced in 2019, has been instrumental in making packaging more sustainable for various pladis brands, including the creation of new display packaging for McVitie’s ‘Golden Buzzer’ competition.   

Recently, Smith announced that it had replaced 1.2 billion pieces of plastic a year ahead of schedule.