Al Bayader International, the global manufacturer, distributor and retailer of creative solutions in sustainable food packaging, healthy food and personal and home care products, highlighted the need to bring innovation to the market in order to strengthen sustainable packaging solutions to drive the retail sector of the new era, as the UAE focuses on achieving its Net Zero goals by 2050.Addressing the 11th Middle East Retail Forum held in Dubai, Jamil Haddad, Head of Business Development & Sustainability at Al Bayader International, said that Sustainability, Innovation and People are key to transforming the retail sector which in itself has transformed significantly with the onset of omnichannel retailing, calling for new approaches to doing business.He said: “The UAE has announced its National Pathways to Net Zero by 2050 with a commitment to reduce absolute emissions by 18% compared to the UAE’s updated second Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC) under the Paris Agreement by 2030, and then 60% by 2040, and 100% by 2050, compared to 2019. This is an opportunity and a call for the retail sector to step up its sustainability commitments.“At Al Bayader, we have been pioneering sustainable packaging solutions for the food and beverage industry, and we are committed to driving further innovations in this sector to meet the growing demand from the customers for eco-friendly packaging solutions. These are strong indicators of the support that consumers lend towards achieving sustainability goals. The industry must work together to focus on cutting emissions through creative and innovative approaches.”The 11th Middle East Retail Forum was held under the theme, ‘Unfolding Retail Stories.’ Jamil Haddad presented the Al Bayader story at a Presidential Debate-style session, titled ‘Trailer/Teaser 2030: Future of Retail’, where he shared the Plan of Action for further strengthening the sustainability commitments of Al Bayader International. He presented the strategic approach of the company and the disruptive innovations that have been implemented, including the embracing of the circular economy model.Haddad also mentioned that transparency is key to clients when one addresses the sustainability vs cost ratio so they know they are paying for that added value which eventually helps the planet.Further strengthening its sustainability and ESG framework, Al Bayader International is implementing its 4-R Pathway to Circularity, which focuses on ‘Redesigning, Reducing, Reusing, and Recycling.’ This approach prevents plastic packaging ending up in nature by improving reuse and recycling methods, as well as reduces the carbon footprint of packaging through eco-design to ensure circularity in every step. It also optimises resource use to promote energy efficiency.Al Bayader International has a wide range of sustainable packaging solutions, including the Sukkur range made from sugarcane pulp. The production process emits fewer CO2 emissions, is industrially compostable and reduces carbon-footprint. Al Bayader International’s Bio’d material is another sustainable packaging solution that features a new technology that allows plastic to biodegrade in landfills. Highlighting its commitment to sustainability, last year, the company installed a 980 kWp solar rooftop plant at its plant in Jebel Ali, which spans an area of 4,000 square metres and will generate over 1.5 GWh of clean electricity annually.