Pepsi unveils Cent Percent Plant based Bottle

PepsiCo Inc. on Tuesday unveiled a bottle made entirely of plant material, which it claims bests the technology of rival Coca-Cola.

The bottle which is made from switch grass, pine bark, corn husks and other materials; PepsiCo hopes will reduce its potential carbon footprint. Pepsi plans to also use orange peels, oat hulls, potato scraps and other leftovers from its food business to develop similar bottling materials.

The new bottle looks, feels and protects the drink inside exactly the same as its current bottles.

The new bottles, which the company claims to be the world's first bottle of a common type of plastic called PET* made entirely of plant-based materials, took millions of dollars spent over many years. According to the company, the new plastic will cost about the same as traditional plastic.

The 100 percent plant based bottle is in tandem with several steps PepsiCo has taken recently to reduce its environmental impact. The company created a fully compostable bag for its SunChips line. It cut the amount of plastic in its Aqua-Fina bottle in 2009. And its Naked Juice line is in the midst of switching to a bottle made entirely of recycled plastic bottles.

Notably rival Coca-Cola Co. currently produces a bottle using 30 percent plant-based materials and recently estimated it is still needs several years to develop a 100 percent plant bottle that's commercially viable.

Once PepsiCo’s 100 percent plant based bottle surpasses the limited testing in 2012, it’ll start replacing the current traditional PET bottles.

* PET bottles: Industry standard for plastic packaging. Traditional plastic, called PET, made using fossil fuels, like petroleum, is used in beverage bottles, food pouches, coatings and other common products. PET is preferred as it's lightweight and shatter-resistant, its safety is well-researched and it doesn't affect flavors. Although it’s NON-biodegradable or compostable; but it is fully recyclable. --------

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