Neutral Foods has unveiled a new look for its organic whole and 2% milk cartons. Neutral’s unique cartons double as a canvas for educating consumers about the brand's commitment to carbon neutrality: from "grass to glass."
Jill Visit, Executive Creative Director at Neutral, shared why communicating this to customers is vital: "Neutral has a story that most people haven't heard before, so it can be a challenge to explain quickly and succinctly on a carton. We want consumers to know Neutral supports greenhouse gas reductions on farms in a way that conveys our sense of climate optimism and hopefulness – a core tenet of our brand."
The new packaging illustrates Neutral's collaborative work with farmers and highlights its meticulous approach to measuring and offsetting greenhouse gas emissions. The redesign emphasizes Neutral's core values:
- Caring for Animals, People, and the Planet: The packaging communicates Neutral's dedication emphasizing the well-being of animals, supporting local farmers, and contributing to the overall health of the planet.
- Measuring and Offsetting Greenhouse Gas Emissions: Neutral takes responsibility for every stage of our milk's life cycle, from farm to fridge.
- Collaborating with Farmers: Neutral actively works with farmers, encouraging and adopting practices that reduce dairy's greenhouse gas emissions, to help ensure a sustainable future for agriculture.
- Renewable Energy from Dairy Cows: Neutral’s packaging declares that what can't be reduced is offset with renewable energy, demonstrating a closed-loop, sustainable system.
- Pouring Love, Intention, and Impact into Every Carton: Neutral’s commitment to quality, flavor, and environmental impact lets consumers know that Neutral is a conscious and impactful decision.
Marcus Lovell Smith, CEO of Neutral Foods, highlighted the evolution of the packaging to align with its growth:
"Our new carton design makes it even easier for consumers to find climate-smart products that help reduce their carbon footprints. We love to enthusiastically point out that we have a product that checks all the boxes that consumers demand, including taste, quality, organic, pasture-raised, and the added peace of mind that our milk is completely carbon neutral today, not decades from now."
An underestimated contributor to carbon emissions
Big Dairy as an industry often slips under the greenhouse gas emission radar, when compared to other, more obvious industries, such as transportation, construction, and, of course, big oil.
Packaging that covers a lot
Neutral collaborated with Faven, a woman-led agency based in Colorado. The agency incorporated category-norm elements, such as the iconic cow, and optimized Neutral’s brand ethos.
Jill Visit sheds light on the design choices, stating, "We knew from the start that we wanted to keep our signature yellow in some form or fashion, and that we wanted to stand out from the herd (couldn’t resist). Other than that, we wanted to include enough cues to let people know right away that this was organic dairy milk, and we wanted it to be playful and approachable. We think Faven did an amazing job bringing that brief to life."
As the first carbon neutral food company in the United States, Neutral is on a mission to radically reduce global emissions produced by agriculture and the food system.
Neutral’s vision extends beyond just offering organic and conventional carbon neutral dairy solutions; it represents a tangible and consumer friendly step towards building a more sustainable and environmentally conscious food system.
"My hope is that people will see that this is a milk that's the highest quality – organic, pasture-raised – that ALSO helps save the planet,” said Visit.
Check out Neutral’s packaging here:
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12 w
This is an impressive move by Neutral!
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17 w
Impressive move by Neutral!
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18 w
I encourage Neutral to continue their transparent communication and educational efforts.
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18 w
I do certainly hope they are carbon neutral and not just a marketing gimmick to attract customers
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18 w
Thank you for sharing this data. I really enjoy what you've written on your blog. You've shared a very useful and entertaining blog post with the public https://pizzagames.io
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18 w
It's important for consumers to be informed about the environmental impact of the products they purchase.
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18 w
@walter_lungayi couldn't agree more. This is the cornerstone for accountability in emission data we are looking for
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18 w
@walter_lungayi and we hope to see them and other companies achieve sustainability and zero carbon emissions in the near future
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18 w
Being clear and transparent about how you reach your climate goals is imperative to get people to trust your climate action. I can't help but compare to @Arla who also updated their cartons in Sweden to state that their milk was net zero. Their methods weren't terrible if you took the time to read through their sustainability report, but they didn't communicate how they did it and thereby lost the trust of their customers. I look forward to hearing about the response from your customers to this new packaging!
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18 w
@Adam_Wallin it certainly is attractive to customers to know what kind of producer they are in ed with and how they impact the planet
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18 w
I like the new look!