SunChips buries noisy green compostable packaging for now
by Michael Smith (Veshengro)
After, with great fanfare, going over to compostable bags Frito-Lay is returning all but one flavor of SunChips back to ordinary non-compostable and non-recyclable bags.
It sounds like Frito-Lay's compostable SunChips bags were just too loud for customers to crunch. Sorry, the bags were what? Too loud? Do they talk?
After a few months of growing backlash against the bags, which will compost in backyard (if you are lucky) or industrial composting settings but are also noticeably louder than other chip bags, Frito-Lay is switching all but one flavor back to the non-compostable versions.
A representative from Frito-Lay told media representatives: “While Frito-Lay works to develop a next-generation compostable package, SunChips Original snacks will remain in the current 100% compostable package, while the other SunChips flavors will be transitioned back to their traditional packaging. Once the improved compostable bag is ready, it will be featured in the SunChips Original flavor, allowing Frito-Lay to monitor consumers' response.”
In retooling the bags, introduced in mid-2009, Frito-Lay might want to take a cue from Boulder Canyon, another chip company that switched to compostable bags recently. While the SunChips bags are made from corn-based polylactic acid, the Boulder Canyon bags are made with wood pulp and aren't as crunchy the SunChips bags.
But, honestly, what is the issue as to the bags being loud. They hardly will be screaming with a high volume of decibels at the user now. It's a bag that has potato chips it it that you are eating. People are just so strange at times.
In the same way that computer manufacturers, in the main, have stopped using Linux in their netbooks because, as I have been told, people complained that Linux did not look like Windows.
© 2010
SunChips bag - CC license by Flickr user j_lai
