Whether producer, retailer or consumer, each of us has had to make some significant changes in the way we operate in the last 18 months.
Staying home, for one, with little or no travel on the cards. Working from home for most of us. Running a business from home has become the new normal. And doing a lot more shopping from home.
So what happens to all the additional packaging material? If it’s plastic – and most of it is around the world – it goes to waste. It’s understood that 95% of the plastic packaging and covering for products, goes to waste.
An Australian research group Minderoo established that single-use plastic – that’s most of the packaging material you have - accounts for over a third of all plastic manufactured every year, and the majority of plastic that’s thrown away. Equal to 130 million tonnes a year. https://sourceofplasticwaste.org/
Is there an alternative?
Yes. Paper and cardboard – made from wood pulp or fibre - were the predominant material for packaging goods of all sorts for many years. And both paper and cardboard are among the most recycled materials around the world.
The wood fibre in the paper and cardboard packaging can be recycled many times – between four and seven times is the industry average – but very much depending on what its used for.
In the study by Two Sides in the United Kingdom, consumers were asked to choose their preferred packaging material based on a range of environmental, visual and physical attributes. These packaging materials were paper/cardboard, plastic, glass and metal. See the fuller Two Sides report here.
Consumers chose paper packaging in Europe, so It would be good to have a similar survey conducted in Singapore and other Asian countries. We’re not sure we would see the same awareness of, or consumer demand for, sustainable packaging.
For Ben Gunneberg, CEO of the Programme for the Endorsement of Forest Certification (PEFC), by choosing only safe and circular materials, producers can ensure that products are safer for both humans and the environment, and the materials used to make them – and package them - can be reused without causing contamination or waste management problems.
He insists that while wood-based fibre packaging can provide an important solution, it is vital that it is sourced from sustainably managed forests.
“To ensure continued availability of suitable forest fibre for the production of paper and packaging, it is essential - in addition to recycling - to manage forests sustainably,“ he says.
Consumer environmental awareness and demand for sustainable products and packaging have noticeably increased.
This is being reflected by the move away from single-use plastics, says Christopher Wong, senior vice president and global business unit head for industrial paper at Asia Pulp & Paper (APP), a PEFC certified supplier.
In a recent interview with Packaging Europe magazine, he pointed to products such as Foopak Bio Natura, in the range of APP recyclable food packaging for Europe, which has "outstanding moisture and liquid resistance, is fully recyclable, industrial and home compostable, and biodegradable".
He explained that it is paperboard engineered with unique multi-layer, plastic-free coatings, especially designed and refined to package food and drink.
We can find more examples in Asia, where producers are coming up with innovative paper and packaging solutions good for people and the planet:
- Thai Beverage introduced PET bottles using plant-based ingredients. The “replace” component refers to the replacing of pack types, such as plastic with more recyclable alternatives.
- Winking Seal Beer Co launched canned bottled water in Vietnam, seen as more recyclable than PET bottles. The “recycle” aspect comprises both greater recycling and use of recycled material for packaging production.
- Danone and Coca-Cola introduced 100% recycled PET for their bottled water brands Aqua in Indonesia and Viva in the Philippines respectively.
- Malaysia’s Teo Seng Paper Products produces sturdy egg trays made of recycled newspapers and corrugated cartons, certified by PEFC.
There will be more innovative approaches to consumer and eco-friendly packaging popping up all around the world, but one which “takes the cake” must be a ground-breaking new sustainable alternative to plastic in packaging coming from world-renowned paper manufacturer Arjowiggins. The pioneering paper is fully recyclable, compostable, marine degradable and made from renewable raw materials. (The Sylvicta Brand)
Consumer demand will grow even more for sustainable packaging. Fibre from trees - harvested from forests grown for the purpose – will one day dominate as the best material for packaging in the age of e-commerce.
It’s a renewable resource, it’s recyclable and it’s responsibly sourced.
Paper and packaging that’s here to stay. For good.
