Frito Lay & Walkers Potato Chip Bags to Be Made From Potato Peels

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There’s something satisfying with the noisy way that we open our bags of potato chips. Apparently, though it’s not too environmentally friendly, considering that 34% of each bag’s 80-gram carbon footprint is in the packaging. PepsiCo is trying to change that with more eco-friendly (and quieter) packaging options.

PepsiCo’s Frito Lay and Walkers brands will upgrade to biodegradable packaging within 18 months. The new potato chip bags will be made from starch derived from potato peelings, thus helping save on costs by recycling potato by-products.

Aside from the packaging, PepsiCo promises to reduce the carbon impact of its crops by 50% within five years. This means using hardier potato varieties that don’t need as much water to grow, and using special probes that help regulate the use of water for the potato crops. PepsiCo is also using lower-carbon fertilizers to achieve this goal.

The next time you open a bag of potato chips, it might just be a quieter, eco-friendlier type.

Image credit: flickr