The Principality Stadium has joined Cardiff City Stadium and Swansea.com Stadium in making the switch away from plastic to seaweed-based food packaging.
Wales’ first major home rugby game of the year at Principality Stadium – when Wales took on Ireland – marked the completion of Notpla’s packaging rollout across Welsh stadiums.
Notpla – in an initiative led by Compass Cymru in partnership with Levy UK + Ireland – is set to replace more than 750,000 single-use plastic packaging items across the three stadiums.
Winners of Prince William’s Earthshot Prize in 2022, Notpla’s solutions replace plastic at scale while working within the realities of foodservice operations. Unlike existing plastic or bioplastic packaging, which often contains hidden chemicals or require energy-intensive industrial composting, Notpla’s packaging is:
- Made using seaweed – making it renewable, regenerative, and naturally biodegradable
- PFAS-free – Notpla packaging is certified PFAS-free with no unhealthy “forever chemicals”.
- Home-compostable – it breaks down just like a fruit peel, with no need for industrial composting facilities.
- Water and grease-resistant – performing just as well as plastic-lined containers but without the environmental cost.
Across the three stadiums, the switch to Notpla packaging is expected to prevent 1.4 tonnes of plastic waste per year from being created and entering the waste stream, and reduce carbon emissions by an estimated 14.2 tonnes CO₂e annually, supporting Wales’ net-zero ambitions.
Derek Walker, Future Generations Commissioner for Wales, said:
“We need businesses to play their part if we are to achieve Wales’ sustainability goals. I am pleased to see Wales’s largest sports venues lead the way in eliminating plastic in stadium food service, which shows it is both scalable and commercially viable.”
Jane Byrd, Managing Director, Compass Cymru, said:
“At Compass Cymru and Levy we are passionate about sustainability and have been working with the Principality Stadium, Cardiff City Stadium, and Swansea.com Stadium to reduce single-use plastic waste. By rolling out Notpla packaging across these three iconic stadiums, we’re not just reducing plastic and carbon emissions – we’re proving to others that better solutions exist today and setting a new standard for what’s possible in event catering.”
Pierre Paslier, Co-CEO & Co-Founder, Notpla, said:
“When businesses, venues, and policymakers come together, we can drive real impact. By working with Compass Cymru and Levy UK + Ireland, we’re demonstrating that eliminating plastic in stadium foodservice is both scalable and commercially viable. We can’t wait to see this example inspiring further action across the UK and beyond.”
