Stay Tray
Ecodex Case Study
Impressive Environmental Credentials Help Fuel Stellar Growth for Aussie Startup
Situation
Changing consumer sentiment fuels product innovation
With consumer concerns about the environment growing in recent years, the food industry is increasingly turning to sustainable packaging for serving food and beverages. Reusable coffee cups are on the rise worldwide with consumers and retailers both recognizing the positive environmental and economic impact of the sustainable solution*. As consumer demand for more environmentally friendly product packaging steadily rises, Stay Tray founder, Kate Stewart, seized on the opportunity.
“Hundreds of thousands of cups of coffee are made every day in reusable cups and transported in disposable coffee trays. Consumers were clamoring for reusable coffee cups, but [still] using disposable coffee trays,” said Stewart.
The Australian entrepreneur created Stay Tray, a sustainable, reusable drink tray made from 100% recycled material, sourced locally.
Reducing the world’s waste, one tray at a time.
“Stay Tray is all about simplicity, style and sustainability. Stay Tray is the very first reusable drink tray made from 100% recycled material.”
A runaway success with consumers since hitting the market in 2018, Stay Tray recognized the need to sway business to accelerate adoption.
According to the World Bank, there is 40 million tonnes of paper waste generated globally every year. Stay Tray, an Australian start-up, is committed to reducing this waste and has created a reusable alternative to the cardboard multi-cup tray. It is made using 100% recycled material and designed to accommodate about 95% of disposable and reusable cups and bottles.
With multinational quick-service restaurant chains who have a commitment to sustainability and minimizing the environmental impact, showing a willingness to embrace brand-new reusable drink trays, Stay Tray needed validation of their environmental performance.
Challenges
Validating product claims
- Back up sustainability claims: why is Stay Tray more sustainable than a disposable cardboard tray (which can be recycled), and how it can be measured?
- Validate Stay Tray with tangible scientific analysis to provide data for CEOs and production managers of global corporations – consumers of disposable cardboard trays, who evaluate the adoption of the reusable tray from an environmental perspective.
A life cycle assessment (LCA) for Stray Tray proved to be an essential element to confirm the product’s environmental credentials.LCA is a methodology that evaluates the environmental impacts of the entire life cycle of a product from mineral extraction to end of life. It considers impacts such as, water use, land use, energy and greenhouse gases generated at each stage of producing a product or delivering a service. Procedures for conducting LCAs are governed by ISO standards 14040 and 14044.
* KeepCup, the brand of reusable coffee cups, used in more than 65 countries around the world, claims that since 2008 over 8 million KeepCups had been sold, diverting potential billions of disposable cups from landfill across the globe.
Solution
Confirming the Stay Tray advantage with Ecodex LCA
Ecodex beat out several competitors to scoop the Stay Tray LCA research project based on:
- A comprehensive approach for gathering data and information.
- Deep understanding of how an LCA report can be applied for business purposes.
The research phase was completed with comprehensive interviews and surveys, covering all aspects of product sourcing, manufacturing, usage and end of life. The research revealed key insights to secure Stay Tray’s sustainable advantage:
- To source everything locally, within a 50 km radius.
- To ensure various washing options: it can be put in a dishwasher; it doesn’t need to be washed every time you use it.
- Commitment to take back Stay Trays from customers at the end of life – to put it back into manufacturing, which means zero waste.
The environmental impact of Stay Tray product was analyzed through the LCA methodology using the Ecodex LCA software.
To contrast the disposable cardboard drink tray alternative, the company analyzed how many times a reusable tray needs to be used until it has an “environmental return on investment,” reaching the environmental break-even point.
Stay Tray were provided with a detailed LCA report together with suggestions for the commercial presentations of the findings.
“We were happy to collaborate. The company shares our values and goals – which is literally to make a difference to people and planet. The way the team managed the project was seamless. They not only provided us with an LCA report but also with understanding how to leverage the analysis data in our business goals.”
Results
Ecodex LCA helps fuel Stay Tray success
Armed with Ecodex LCA report data, Stay Tray has validated its exceptional product, reinforced brand credibility, and confirmed their environmental credentials enabling Stay Tray to engage industry partners with confidence.
The LCA helped fuel an impressive 50% growth in corporate contracts since the assessment’s completion.
Industry recognition has also followed with Stay Tray winning international acclaim scooping awards at the Australasian Packaging Innovation & Design Awards in 2019 and the prestigious WorldStar Packaging Award in 2020 convened by the World Packaging Organization.
