Wednesday, June 5, 2013

Dell Ramps Waste-Free Packaging Efforts

Round Rock-based Dell said this morning that it is in the midst of an effort to eliminate waste in its packaging by 2020, in a new effort to tap into recyclable or compostable packaging materials. According to Dell, it is hoping to become "waste-free" in its packaging by 2020, by using a new wheat straw material which turns agricultural waste into boxes. Dell said it is looking to source 100 percent of its packaging from sustainable materials, including recycled or renewable content, up from about 50 percent of its packaging today. Dell--which sources many products from China--said the move to use "wheat straw" will make the cardboard boxes it uses to ship notebooks from China more sustainable, since the wheat straw is currently just burned by farmers in that country.