Eco-friendly is the new age of packaging and consumers are loving it!
Although with so many products on the market, it can be hard to keep up with the latest in sustainable eco-friendly packaging materials. Here, we summarise the key eco-friendly packaging terms, developments and products.
Eco-Friendly Packaging vs. Sustainable Packaging vs. Biodegradable Packaging
At Signet, we often get asked questions, such as: ‘what is sustainable packaging?’, ‘what is biodegradable packaging’, ‘what is eco-friendly packaging’, and most commonly, ‘what’s the difference between all of them?’
The terms ‘sustainable packaging’ and ‘eco-friendly packaging’ are often used interchangeably to describe packaging that’s better for the environment. The main difference is that ‘sustainable packaging’ should result in improved sustainability too, which can be determined by conducting a life cycle assessment.
This assesses the environmental impacts associated with every stage of a product's life, from the extraction and manufacturing of the raw material to distribution, end consumer use to disposal, to find that product’s carbon footprint.
Let’s use mailer bags as an example. Their carbon footprint will be determined by their material (virgin plastic, recycled plastic, paper), the amount of material used, weight, manufacturing process, shipping output, storage, likelihood of reuse, and other factors.
From this analysis, recycled poly mailer bags will likely come out as more sustainable than mailers made from virgin plastic due to the material. Therefore, they can be considered the more sustainable and eco-friendly packaging solution.
When choosing packaging, it is important that you consider your own supply chain and customers. Giving them the opportunity to increase circulation by reusing, returning, recycling or composting will benefit our planet, and quite possibly your brand reputation as well.
A Few Common Ways Packaging Can Be More Sustainable and Eco-Friendlier Are:
Compostable
A packaging product that breaks down into natural components and returns nutrients back to soil. Compostable void fill protection, mailers and foodware are among the products available. The two types of packaging composting are home composting (the breakdown of organic waste, usually via a backyard compost barrel or home compost bin) and industrial composting (an optimised process in a specialised facility that ensures rapid biodegradation of organic material not suitable for home conditions, such as PLA bioplastic products).
Recyclable
Packaging that can be easily recycled through kerbside recycling, such as paper or cardboard, or through a designated facility.
Biodegradable
Packaging that breaks down into natural components when exposed to light, air, and moisture, even in landfill. Kraft paper protective wrapping and kraft tape are two common biodegradable packaging options. It is critical you choose actual biodegradable plastics that can be broken down by microbes and turned into biomass, water and carbon dioxide, instead of many plastics that are labelled biodegradable, but are actually traditional fossil-fuel plastics that are simply degradable, which turns plastic fragment into microplastics.
Reusable
Packaging that can be reused multiple times, reducing the amount of material sent to landfill, lowering the demand for more, and improving the overall sustainability. Reusable supermarket shopping bags are an obvious example.
Returnable
By opening a reverse loop, you reduce the amount of packaging materials that go into landfill.
Made from recycled or renewable sources
Products that contain a significant proportion of recycled material or made from materials that can regenerate in a reasonable amount of time and can be responsibly managed.
Non-toxic
Packaging that doesn’t harm the environment with pesky chemicals and contaminants as it degrades.
Eco-focused in design
Packaging that aims to reduce its carbon footprint through innovative design, more sustainable manufacturing methods, and such. A product that reduces its packaging by 20% would be considered eco-focused.
Read our article on Sustainability Simplified to understand more about the recyclable, biodegradable and compostable terms used in packaging.
Why use sustainable packaging?
We also sometimes get asked whether sustainable and eco-friendly packaging is worth it. To us, it’s a no-brainer. It’s good for the planet, promotes your brand in a good light, and is often as affordable as non-eco-friendly packaging. The question isn’t why, but how to best implement it into your business.
Discover more advantages of sustainable packaging and eco-friendly packaging over on our blog.
What are some sustainable and eco-friendly packaging examples?
Bubble Wrap and Fill Void Alternatives
Sustainable packaging is one of Ranpak’s many specialties. Its FillPak and PadPak ranges offer great recyclable, biodegradable and compostable alternatives to void fill protection, while its Geami WrapPak, made from kraft paper, is an ideal alternative to conventional bubble wrap.
Read how Lush cosmetics uses Ranpak for their in-the-box protection.
Paper Tape
An easy yet effective switch you can make is to environmentally friendly carton sealing tape, made from >99% recycled material, or Kraft Water-Activated Tape, made from 100% biodegradable and recyclable natural Kraft Paper and Starch Adhesive. Their high holding power with good tensile strength makes them suitable for a wide variety of different cardboard qualities.
Compostable Mailers
Compostable mailers are a great way to show your customers you mean business. These sustainable packaging winners are made from plant-based materials, and will compost in industrial facilities and home composting environments, turning into organic fertiliser.
Along with these examples, Signet offers so many other eco-friendly packaging solutions, including packing boxes made from 100% recycled materials, recyclable Jiffy mailing bags made from 100% recycled newspaper, and fully recyclable, compostable, biodegradable kraft wrapping paper.
For more info, visit our eco-friendly hub. Or, if you’d like to speak with a Signet staff member about our eco-friendly packaging options, contact our Sales Team on 13 7446, email sales@signet.net.au, or Live Chat with us by visiting www.signet.net.au.
