The right sustainability strategy will not only strive for environmental benefit but also enhance a company’s operations in the process. The only way to ensure measurable and lasting success is for sustainability to be mainstreamed into an organization’s current processes. This means that sustainability must become a part of all daily considerations associated with a … Read more
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In previous blogs, we’ve explored many topics within sustainable packaging, such as the role of LCA, ways to implement recyclable materials, and source reduction strategies. While all ambitious reduction goals, none of them solve the inherent waste that occurs once the job of packaging is done. Stemming from this issue, zero-waste packaging is a budding … Read more
Consumers’ views on packaging are changing. Packaging is no longer seen as “essential waste,” but instead an opportunity for brands to improve their relationship with the environment and the consumers they serve. This shift has had a dramatic impact on the consumer goods marketplace in recent years. Sustainability is becoming an expectation for leading brands … Read more
Life-Cycle Assessment or LCA is a cradle-to-grave analysis that calculates environmental impacts associated with all stages of a package’s lifecycle including material sourcing, manufacturing, conversion, distribution, and end-of-life. The life cycle approach accounts for environmental impacts associated with the materials and processes used to bring packaging to market and allows decision makers to incorporate environmental parameters alongside economic factors. Here … Read more
By creating packaging that is able to be recycled, products become more attractive to consumers that are becoming increasingly environmentally aware. Recycling is the reprocessing of materials at the end of their primary lives, ideally for use in a similar application. By diverting what would normally end up in landfills, recycling has the potential to manage … Read more
Every year, as the Earth cycles through its four seasons, a natural carbon cycle is also occurring. During the colder months that cause dormant plant life, carbon in the upper atmosphere grows. As the temperature begins to warm and vegetation can grow again, plants are able reduce the amount of carbon through the photosynthesis process. … Read more
The UPS Eco Responsible Packaging Program is a cooperative sustainability effort between UPS and its customers. Created in 2010, the program provides a formal strategy designed to reduce packaging waste. Through this initiative, UPS, the world’s largest package delivery company, is taking a leading role to encourage and support responsible packaging practices among its customers. … Read more
Recently, the phrase “circular economy” has become the latest craze in sustainability news and initiatives. A circular economy is a system that strives for little to no waste; products are used to their maximum potential and then materials are resourced when they have reached the end of their lives. It’s meant to revolutionize the old … Read more
Packaging sustainability should be pretty straight forward. All packaging is made from a handful of material classes that undergo conversion processes to create the package shape and form needed to protect the product. These materials and processes, including how packaging is treated in the waste stream, can be examined and profiled for environmental performance using … Read more
Source reduction is a simple yet effective strategy that is both eco-friendly and fiscally responsible. Following “lean design” principles compels the designer to minimize material usage in packages and reconsider disposable containers designed for one-time use. Source reduction lessens the environmental impact of your package by: Conserving resources Saving energy spent on manufacturing & transportation … Read more