Many brands tout the sustainability of their packaging by highlighting its minimal weight and low volume. This trend has gained traction in the past several years, compelling many CPGs to re-design their lower-weight packaging. Subsequently, industries involved in making lighter-weight materials such as flexible plastic are now claiming that they have less of an overall environmental impact because a lighter weight package requires less fuel to transport and distribute than heavier-weight substrates such as paperboard.
Even though shipping lightweight packages may have some advantages (e.g., less costly to transport), these general environmental claims do not take into account other aspects of the packages’ footprint, such as the complexity of the converting process (e.g., raw materials and energy required), secondary transport packaging, and after-use recycling rates.
What are the Latest Developments?
PPC recently sponsored an independent study on the environmental impact of consumer product primary packaging weight, which has been vetted and third-party reviewed. The study, data for which was supplied by the American Forest & Paper Association (AF&PA) and the Paper Recycling Coalition (PRC), compared three different package sets that were packaged in both a paperboard carton and flexible plastic.
What Were the Key Takeaways?
The findings clearly demonstrate that “simply comparing primary package weights of alternative package types is insufficient for describing differences in key environmental aspects or impact categories associated with the sourcing, use, and disposal systems of the packages.” Furthermore, “claims and decisions regarding nonrenewable energy usage and greenhouse gas (GhG) emissions for the use of different primary packages need to be based on more than primary package weight. Proper consideration must be given to, at minimum, the key determinants identified above.”
What Can I Do?
Let us know if you encounter any misleading claims suggesting that a lower weight plastic package may be better for the environment than other substrates such as paperboard so that we can follow up and respond appropriately.
What is PPC’s Position?
PPC agrees with the findings that it is misleading to merely claim that a lightweight primary package lowers a package’s environmental impact without studying an entire packaging system and offering supporting Life Cycle Assessment data.
Resources
SavvyPack analyses, consulting services, and market research studies are available from Allied Development Corp.