Industry News

NFL’s Chiefs to trial new in-stadium sustainability initiative

Arrowhead Stadium, home of NFL American football franchise the Kansas City Chiefs, is to become the first professional sports venue to sell a pre-packed compostable peanut bag as part of a wider environmental initiative.

Due to be on sale for the first time at the Chief’s game against the Buffalo Bills on November 26, the bag will initially be offered throughout general concessions and in-seat vending at the stadium, with plans to expand this to other areas after a trial period.

The Chiefs said that more than 15,000 bags of peanuts are sold at its Arrowhead Stadium each season, and by introducing packaging that is more sustainable and friendly for the environment, this will further enhance its ongoing ‘Extra Yard for the Environment’ programme.

The initiative has been designed to devise and implement new green policies for the Chiefs, while at the same time raising awareness for sustainability efforts at its Arrowhead Stadium home.

Brandon Hamilton, vice-president stadium operations at the Chiefs, said: “Over the past few years we have put an increased focus on our sustainability program, Extra Yard for the Environment, and have worked to find new, innovative ways to reduce our organisation’s carbon footprint.

“We are excited to unveil this product, as we believe it will have a positive impact on our efforts in Arrowhead Stadium and will also spread to other venues to make a positive change within the industry.”

BASF, Aramark and Hampton Farms collaborated on an 18-month development process to produce the new bag, working with Missouri Organic Recycling to test packaging prototypes to ensure the final product met composting guidelines. The bag is the first-of-its-kind to be made from BASF’s certified compostable ecovio biopolymer and Epotal adhesive.

Paul Kearns, business development manager at BASF, added: “We welcome the opportunity to demonstrate to snack producers and users of flexible packaging that compostable is a viable waste-reduction strategy.”

Image: Carlin Leslie