“The new SunChips compostable bag has caused quite a lot of noise for being noisy,” says Tony Matta, vice president of marketing, Frito Lay Canada. “We’ve had a record number of calls and emails to our office since we launched in February of this year and despite what you may have heard, SunChips is and always was keeping the bag here in Canada.  We believe that trading off a little noise in order to help shrink our footprint on the planet is worth it.” 

Come on Canada, hear the noise!
Frito Lay Canada wants Canadians to decide for themselves how they feel about the new SunChips compostable bag and are challenging people to go out and test the noise levels for themselves. Touch it, squeeze it and tell them what you really think. Is it really that unbearable when you consider the environmental benefits? A new Facebook page (www.facebook.com/sunchipscanada) has been set up to take consumer comments and feedback. If at the end of your test you still feel the bag is too loud for you, SunChips brand will send you a free pair of earplugs. Please visit our Facebook page for more information.

So why is the bag so noisy?
For those interested in the technical side, the compostable bag gets its characteristic noisiness from a plant-based material called polylactic acid (PLA), a material that is more than 90 per cent renewable and allows it to be compostable. There is a distinctly different sound than traditional chip bags because the plant-based materials are not as soft at room temperature. They will, however, completely break down in a hot, active compost pile in approximately 14 weeks.

“We are continually looking for ways to improve the bag in order to reduce noise while at the same time keeping the environmental benefits, and we expect to have news to share on that soon. In the short term we feel the current bag offers a big reduction in waste for a little amount of noise,”says Helmi Ansari, sustainability leader, Frito Lay Canada. “We always welcome the feedback of Canadians, but also want to encourage them to accept the greater purpose of the bag, noise and all.”

The SunChips 100% compostable chip bag will continue to appear on shelves in Canada in the 225g and 425g size bags. For more information, please visit www.facebook.com/sunchipscanada or www.sunchips.ca.

The zero-emission electric vehicles were made by Smith Electric Vehicles, the world’s leading manufacturer of electric vehicles, and each has a 60 kilometre per day range which meets the daily kilometre needs of the majority of the routes from the designated distribution centres.  The six electric vehicles will be powered by electricity from the grid, offset by renewable energy credits, and at the end of the battery lifespan (3-5 years or longer) they will be returned to Smith Electric for recycling. 

“Electric vehicles are good for the environment because they do not use fossil fuels and they do not produce greenhouse gas or particulate emissions during operation,” says Helmi Ansari, sustainability leader, Frito Lay Canada. “We’ve been striving to reduce our footprint on the planet for many years and energy conservation has long been a strategic initiative for the company. Today’s introduction of electric vehicles to our fleet brings us one step closer to our vision of a fleet that’s comprised of several types of highly-efficient vehicles that meet our various route needs and driving distances across the country.”

“Commitment to sustainable growth is a core Frito Lay Canada value, as it is for our parent company, PepsiCo Inc, which strives to achieve Performance with Purpose.  Performance with Purpose is about achieving financial success while improving all aspects of the communities in which we operate - environmentally, socially and economically - creating a better tomorrow,” says Marc Guay, president, PepsiCo Foods Canada. “The introduction of our six zero-emission electric vehicles is the latest step in our ongoing environmental sustainability journey,”

 “There are long-term benefits to having a sustainability strategy – both for the business and the environment,” said Guay.  “We think it’s about demonstrating leadership and being a responsible corporate citizen.  We are on an environmental sustainability journey and we firmly believe our efforts will have a long-term benefit to our consumers and the environment.”

The goals at Frito Lay Canada are clear: use less water, electricity and fuels while reducing waste from everything the company makes, moves and sells. In addition to the introduction of the electric vehicles into its delivery fleet, Frito Lay Canada has:

• Reduced the total distance travelled by delivery trucks by 3 per cent (1 million kilometres) in 2009 by optimizing delivery routes.
• Reduced manufacturing fuel consumption by more than 20 per cent since 1999 per kilogram   of snacks produced.
• Reduced water consumption by over 30 per cent per unit since 1999, saving 5.4 billion litres of water through changes in manufacturing plants.
• Reused approximately 40 million shipping cartons since 1999 which is equivalent to more than 300,000 trees saved annually and more than 2 million trees saved since 1999.
• In 2009, diverted more than 92 per cent of manufacturing waste from landfills into recycling and re-use streams, and are striving for over 99 per cent Landfill diversion (1 per cent or less of the waste going to landfill).
• Introduced the world’s first 100 per cent compostable chip bag innovation with the SunChips® brand.

Frito Lay Canada’s environmental sustainability efforts were recognized in 2009 by several prestigious Canadian government and industry environmental awards:

• 2009 CIPEC (Canadian Industry Program for Energy Conservation) Leadership Award for Corporate Stewardship
• 2009 Green Supply Chain Award from Transport Canada and Supply Chain Logistics Canada
• 2009 CCME (Canadian Council of Ministers of Environment) Pollution Prevention Award

This year’s introduction of the SunChips® 100 per cent compostable chip bag and today’s announcement about the addition of the six zero-emission electric vehicles are all important steps in the environmental sustainability journey with many more initiatives to continue into 2010 and beyond.

From national hotels and car rentals, to local golf courses, zoos and amusement parks, Lay’s® Chip Trips has partnered with more than 400 Canadian attractions and businesses to offer more than 5,000 individual Chip Trips to Canadians.

"The Lay’s brand is part of every summer barbeque, and in every community across the country,” said Tony Matta, vice president of marketing for Frito Lay Canada. "We want to give back to our consumers by launching Lay’s Chip Trips, which will help our consumers rediscover Canada this summer. We’re thrilled to offer what we believe to be unprecedented value to Canadians through this national program."

Specially-marked bags of Lay’s® potato chips are available now through early August nationwide.  By simply signing up for a Lay’s® Chip Trips account at lays.ca, Canadians can bank points by entering the unique PIN on the back of the bag.  These points can then be redeemed for thousands of different discounts at local attractions offered at www.lays.ca:

• Points from one 235 g bag can be redeemed for up to $20 in savings at various local attractions†
• Points from five 235 g bags can be redeemed for a Buy 1, Get 50% off second night at Marriott Hotels of Canada
• Points from two 235g bags can be redeemed for a year of savings at over a hundred of Canada’s most beautiful golf courses!
  † Actual savings depend on offer redeemed. For details on offers and Terms and Conditions, visit www.lays.ca.

Lay's® Chip Trips gives Canadians big discounts on thousands of local attractions including restaurants, festivals, amusement parks, museums, zoos and other top Canadian tourist spots through an easy and engaging loyalty program.  

Lay's has also joined forces with the Canadian Tourism Commission (CTC), to help show Canadians how simple and fun a local staycation can be.

"In 2009, our LOCALS KNOW campaign changed over 1.3 million Canadians' travel plans in favour of staying in Canada and exploring their own country,” says Gisele Danis, executive director strategic marketing, Canada Program at the Canadian Tourism Commission. "With our partnership with Lay's Chip Trips, we are optimistic that even more Canadians will be inspired to seek out exotic and unexpected travel experiences in Canada this summer."

"We expect Lay’s Chip Trips to be the biggest Canadian consumer engagement campaign of 2010, truly something that has never been done before," said Matta. "With hundreds of local partners, we’ll be able to reach people in every community across Canada."

The Lay’s® Chip Trips program packaging will be on-shelf from April 2010 until early August 2010. Vouchers can be redeemed at most partners up to December 31, 2010. Consumers can log on to www.lays.ca to create a personal account and search for the discounts that appeal to them.

¹ OMD Snapshots Survey conducted in April 2010:  n=904, English and French panellists 18+