Consumers want more sustainable packaging solutions and are learning more about what that means.
Increased awareness of global environmental challenges and the implementation of sustainability plans through the supply chain inevitably means more demand for sustainable packaging solutions.
“Our customers are looking to support consumers who see sustainability as a core need and as such are willing to absorb a reasonable extra cost,” comments Andrew Grimbaldeston, Commercial Director – Colpac. “Ultimately, we all know there is no other option but to switch to more sustainable packaging, not just to manage incoming legislation, but to do the right thing.”
Material and design innovation is central to Colpac’s proposition. The company thoroughly tests the latest recyclable materials and coatings to support innovative suppliers, advance packaging technology and provide more sustainable solutions for customers.
“This is a global and a local challenge for the industry which must adapt packaging for specific national infrastructures,” adds Grimbaldeston. “Packaging design also needs to align with new policies, legislation, and regulations. For example, we have been evolving some of our range in preparation for the incoming changes in recycling regulations set out by OPRL. The industry is responding well but faces significant challenges in facilitating international alignment in the absence of a coherent political response.”
Infrastructure is a key challenge. In the UK, individual councils and waste collection companies have varying requirements, which means even basic recyclable products may not find their way into some systems.
The willingness to consider investment in new infrastructure is often a barrier to implementing the right developments in the sector. The lack of engagement with compostable plant-based materials is a good example. Compostable packaging could play an important and effective role in optimising the sustainability of food packaging waste management, but there is resistance across the waste industry to recognise its potential and invest in the facilities required, despite great case studies from Italy and elsewhere showing what can be achieved.
Another huge challenge is competing legislation. Divergent changes in legislation and policy from country to country means packaging design needs to adapt constantly. Examples include different labelling requirements, recycling thresholds and acceptability of materials across the countries that UK firms supply.
Colpac’s best known products include its award winning Stagione® range which is suitable for a wide variety of hot and cold foods. The percentage of plastic in each base product is just above 5%, making it recyclable under even the most stringent of standards. The rPET lids are also recyclable and contain almost 100% recycled materials.
The Zest range is also well known for its environmental credentials. Its innovative, aqueous coating provides a sustainable solution for superior grease and moisture resistance.
Colpac has invested in onshoring the production of products usually imported from overseas. Its new production lines for multi-food pots are a good example. This enables the products to be made using sustainable materials and energy close to the consumer, removing the extra carbon footprint of importing finished goods.
It has the added benefits of a shorter, UK based supply chain and Colpac’s quality assurance in manufacturing. The UK production of its multi-food pots also reduces lead times and enables greater flexibility for bespoke products to better reflect a customer’s brand and product messaging.
John Garner, Head of Innovation and Design at Antalis Packaging, comments: “Adapting to the new packaging challenges companies might be experiencing, for example, rising prices and shortages of material will be key to staying competitive and keeping up with demand. At Antalis’ Smart Packaging Centre, we can review a package design and give advice on how to remove non-recyclable material, increase protection or reduce the overall use of materials. Clever design can ensure that goods are protected but reduce the quantity of the packaging material.”
Antalis’ StretchCONSULT Film review can also make recommendations on how to reduce stretch material usage and cost.
Last year Antalis conducted a survey which indicated 66% of its customers are willing to pay more for environmentally-friendly packaging products. As a result, Antalis has launched its packaging initiative, ‘Protect the Future’, which covers its whole value chain, from sourcing through to recycling, to make sustainable packaging possible, and support customers with their environmental challenges.
Sustainability remains high on the agenda and Antalis has expanded its range of packaging essentials and its environmental services such as carbon offsetting. For example, all packaging materials purchased from Antalis Packaging can now be carbon offset.
Clever design and reviewing packaging are key to achieving more sustainable options. Antalis’ Smart Packaging Centre features a demonstration suite for packaging automation and a dedicated packaging design studio. It provides customers with the opportunity to discuss their sustainable packaging requirements. The new design studio offers innovative packaging design as well as artwork design. Once a packaging solution has been developed on screen, samples can be created – and printed. The ability to create fully printed samples is proving very popular with customers.
Antalis Packaging offers packaging solutions to a wide range of challenges, across the UK, whether it is a bespoke pack design, new packaging, or machinery. The company is also known for its range of specialist packaging products – from boxes and boards, void fill, tapes, shrink and stretch films to strapping and automated equipment.
“We have an unrivalled machinery sales team and engineers, who can offer support selecting the best equipment and provide installation, training and maintenance services,” adds Garner. “We also offer a free consultation service where we identify when machinery or a new packaging solution can provide improvements.”
The Plastic Packaging Tax (PPT) came into force in April. The biggest source of plastic packaging use for most logistics businesses is stretch film and, often, companies are using more than they need to. Through its stretchCONSULT assessment, Antalis has helped customers to reduce their film usage by up to 70%, not only creating savings in terms of material costs but, now the PPT has been introduced, it can help reduce the impact of the £200-per-tonne tax, too. In addition, Antalis has recently introduced a PPT-exempt film containing a minimum of 30% recycled plastic.
Antalis Packaging has also introduced several other new products that contain at least 30% recycled plastic, the threshold that makes them exempt from the PPT including mailing bags, bubble liner, hand stretch film, loosefill and air bags.
Earlier this year Antalis launched a tailored box-making service giving customers time-crucial access to corrugated wrap or box orders within three days. The introduction of the box-making service comes in response to growing demand from customers who have increasingly asked for smaller order quantities to ensure they can fulfil orders when demand spikes or to respond quickly to client-specific requests. Customers can now order in styles and sizes specific to each job, as and when they are required. Right-sizing the packaging materials used also reduces waste, and it helps to increase efficiency in terms of reduced stockholding for the customer and decreases the use of void-fill. The service offers a wide range of corrugated wrap and box styles, available in order quantities as low as 100.
A recent investment in Antalis’ Smart Packaging centre allows the latest developments in packaging automation, including on-demand carton and bag machinery, to be showcased in the new demonstration suite. Customers can also have demonstrations of a range of in-the-box systems in air cushion and paper technology that wrap, cushion and protect products. Systems on display, include those from Lantech, Sealed Air, Ranpak and Pregis.
David Ellerington, Head of UK Design, Innovation & Business Development at DS Smith, comments: “There’s certainly a move towards wanting to reduce excess packaging. Ensuring that we use as few fibres and resources as possible to create packaging that is strong enough to protect a product through the shocks of the supply chain.”
Consumers get frustrated by receiving oversized boxes half filled with air, whilst businesses are spending resources and money on unnecessary packaging and transport. The cost of the extra fibre alone to businesses is £39.4 million each year, and that is without the extra shipping and filler costs.
“Businesses need to work with their packaging suppliers to ensure boxes are the right size and shape,” adds Ellerington. “Boxes that are oversized for the product require filler to protect against damage whilst in transit, but this results in excess waste; good design ensures waste is designed out of the process and that as few raw materials are used as possible.”
Whilst consumers are increasingly expecting brands to help them consume ethically and sustainably, in today’s economic climate, inflation and the rising cost of living are increasingly influencing purchase decisions. “We’re working closely with our customers to provide affordable, next generation e-commerce solutions that provide high levels of optimisation with the sustainability credentials to match, without compromising performance,” says Ellerington. “At the same time, this helps them stand out and in turn, best positions them to retain their customer base at a time when many people will be cutting back.”
Many retailers are looking at how they can make packaging easier to recycle, and are especially focused on removing single use plastics and other non-recyclable materials. In their place, they are exploring the use of alternative fibres such as straw and seaweed.
DS Smith has developed Circular Design Metrics using its Circular Design Principles – a set of five principles which guides its design and innovation community to become experts in circular design and to develop more circular packaging solutions.
These metrics allow the company to measure and compare the performance of a packaging design across a range of indicators, one of which is recyclability. They provide a clear indication of circularity performance and help identify areas with potential for improvement. With this ethos in mind, DS Smith has committed to manufacturing 100% reusable or recyclable packaging by 2023.
“As supply chains become more complex, shopping habits evolve and consumer expectations change, there are several challenges to achieving more sustainable packaging,” Ellerington continues. “Many of these challenges can be combated at the design stage, which dictates a large amount of the pack’s environmental impact.”
Small changes in packaging can unlock supply chain efficiencies that, when delivered at scale, make an enormous difference. For example, something as simple as double-sided tape can significantly reduce waste on returnable packaging, or through clever design minimising material blank size and use of fibre, whilst maintaining fit for purpose and required performance, can equate to substantial material and carbon dioxide savings each year.
“The key to addressing our challenges is to think about the full lifecycle of the package – from the materials used in its production to what happens to it once it’s in the hands of the customer – and consider ways to make these more circular,” adds Ellerington. “We believe that replacing problem plastics in packaging with completely renewable fibre-based materials is the sustainable alternative consumers are both demanding and actively seeking out.”
At the end of 2021, DS Smith had replaced 170 million pieces of problem plastic with paper-based solutions for supermarkets and online retailers around the world.
“E-commerce is clearly here to stay, and brands will require long-term solutions that are fit for the supply chain, which is vastly different to that of traditional retail,” says Ellerington. “For brands and retailers this means potentially changing how they deal with returns, making their packaging more sustainable and creating a ‘wow’ moment when consumers unbox products.”
Design and demand for testing has also been a key trend – brands understand the need to get it right first time before launching new solutions into the complex e-commerce supply chain.
A typical journey in the e-commerce supply chain has up to 50 touch points for every product before it is delivered to consumers, making it essential to optimise packaging to best protect products. DS Smith’s DISCS™ technology, named after the types of testing (Drop, Impact, Shock, Crush, Shake), replicates the real-world product journey to ensure the packaging is fit for purpose. This testing ensures the product is kept safe while avoiding excess packaging.
Ashley Moscrop, Managing Director of Dufaylite, comments: “We believe there is now a move towards minimalist packaging design. Not only to reduce the amount of packaging materials being used but to also optimise and reduce transportation and distribution costs where possible. It is also not just about using recycled and recyclable packaging; we need to use as little as possible and reduce unnecessary packaging use overall.”
The general trend is consumers are willing to pay more for sustainable packaging, especially for premium niche products where the business models can easily accommodate the cost increase. For everyday brands like Ikea, where sustainability is truly at the heart of what they do, then there is also an expectation that needs to be met.
“The challenge for retailers, is the need to keep the costs down whilst delivering what the public want,” adds Moscrop. “And discerning customers increasingly want packaging they can dispose of easily. They also want ethical and sustainable alternatives that don’t cost the earth, but that will create less landfill. And it is the traditional lower cost businesses that are most challenged by this because their business models simply can’t accommodate the pricing increase without passing it on to the consumer. But I do believe that they are all making efforts to move to more sustainable solutions in their own way.”
There have been major innovations in fibrous materials being used as a replacement for traditional plastic packaging, especially in and around food. Dufaylite have also developed thermal box liners this year, using their own honeycomb board, to provide insulation on chilled deliveries. They are an ideal alternative and replacement for polystyrene and lamb’s wool.
The right packaging also isn’t just about keeping the contents safe. From a logistics perspective, it makes storage possible, enabling items to be stacked and stored safely on pallets, reducing damage. Recyclable alternatives such as honeycomb pallets tackle the waste issue from the offset. They can be recycled in store by the supermarket, providing a financial return, and will also save on storage space due to the lightweight nature. They also make lorries lighter on the roads which importantly reduces CO2.
One of the biggest challenges for more sustainable packaging is achieving papers that can withstand moisture to package goods, whilst remaining recyclable. The consumer waste streams also need improving to enable higher rates of recycling or re-use.
“I believe that using single material products like our paper based Envirolite will help to increase recycling rates across the UK and will make it easier for businesses and their customers too,” says Moscrop. The Kite Knife, from Kite Packaging, is a hardwearing, multipurpose tool for warehouse uses, such as opening boxes or cutting hand holes into them. It eradicates the need for multiple cutters and knives, cutting through cardboard like butter, and is designed for optimum user experience, safety, and efficiency.
Large letter postal boxes fit into Royal Mail’s PiP Large Letter specification and enable businesses to minimise and regulate postal costs when it comes to posting small goods. They are also recyclable and biodegradable.
Cardboard delivery trays can be used to store, transport or display goods, helping to streamline logistics processes for businesses. They have vents for airflow and hand holes for comfortable handling and are eco-friendly, reusable, and stackable.
White paper circle labels are perfect for labelling or sealing items. They are print-receptive and use a permanent adhesive that sticks to a variety of surfaces. They can be used in schools, offices, retail and more. Kite Packaging has also expanded its range of FEFCO 0201 single and double wall boxes to include twenty-nine new styles. These are suitable for a variety of uses and industries, containing between 60-90% recycled content and are also recyclable.
“We are now in an era of conscious consumerism where minimalist packaging design is the trend,” a Jake Kirk, Managing Partner at Kite Packaging comments. “Consumers are embracing eco-friendly practices, choosing to reuse, recycle, and upcycle where possible and are opting for companies that are committed to reducing their negative impact on the environment. It’s appealing because it uses less material and therefore, has a reduced impact on the planet.”
According to research, 74% of consumers are willing to pay more for sustainable packaging. We have seen a shift in consumer attitudes with more people going for eco-friendly choices where they are available. Water soluble and biodegradable packing peanuts are a great innovation, performing much better than their Styrofoam counterparts whilst causing none of the damage. Kite sell a variety called EcoFlo. Flexi-hex is an eco-friendly void fill innovation. It takes up only 20% of the space bubble wrap does but serves exactly the same purpose. It is manufactured from 100% recycled content and biodegrades in six weeks.
Sustainable materials need to match, if not exceed, the quality of the unsustainable ones they are replacing to meet the expectations associated with brands. The switch requires significant R&D which is costly. Sustainable materials do not have as well established supply chains and have lower economies of scale which increases the cost. Waste management varies across countries as well as within them so recycling and sustainable disposal can also be difficult.
Many companies are transitioning to biodegradable, compostable or recyclable packaging to be sustainable and better fulfil consumer demands. Digitisation has been a major player too, seeing the rise of ecommerce, exponentially during the pandemic, along with new technology, and robotics and automation, which help to streamline packaging processes.
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