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Getting Started With Sustainable Packaging

February 16, 2010

Image: Tetra Pak

In our last blog post, we looked at what sustainable packaging is, and how it works in practice. This week, we're going to take a look at how you can get started with sustainable packaging––what steps you can take, what options are available, and how you can make it work for your business. 

What are you doing now?

The first step toward sustainable packaging is to consider your current packaging processes. What are you doing right? Are you using any sustainable sources of energy, or any recycled or eco-friendly materials? What could you be doing better? What are your competitors doing?

An easy way to get an accurate picture of where your packaging is at on the sustainability scale is to use the Calculess Environmental Impact Analyzer. A US initiative, it offers a simple analysis of how the different elements that go into making your packaging––consumption of energy, greenhouse emissions, and post-consumer solid waste––contribute to its environmental impact.

If the picture that emerges from the Analyzer doesn't look great, or it all seems too complicated, don't worry––getting started is the hardest step!

What could be improved?

When considering how you can start moving toward sustainable packaging, it's important to consider the entire life cycle of your packaging, from its manufacture to its eventual use and disposal. To illustrate what steps can be taken, let's use the example of a fictitious New South Wales wine company, Eden Vines.

Case Study: Eden Vines

Right now, Eden Vines uses new glass bottles that it receives from a company in Melbourne. For its energy, Eden uses regular, non-renewable sources. It bottles the wine it produces onsite, using non-recycled paper for its labels. It then uses a transport company to ship the bottles around Australia and to overseas markets.

So how could Eden Vines make their packaging more sustainable? Firstly, it could consider getting at least part of its energy from renewable sources, either from the power company, if the power company offers sustainable energy, or by investing in renewable energy infrastructure such as solar panels or wind generators (the costs of which an often be offset by government grants).

For the packaging, there are a number of things to consider. The first and most obvious is the container itself. Of all the ways wine production contributes to a company's environmental footprint, the package is the element that is most under the winery's control.

At the more radical end, Eden could give up bottles altogether and go with one of the lighter, non-glass alternatives, like the Tetra-Pak, the bag in a box, or plastic bottles made from polyethylene terephthalate (PET). Both the Tetra-Pak and the bag in a box are now being used widely in a number of wine markets around the world; all three offer a reduction in carbon footprint when compared to glass.

According to the Tetra Pak website, 'wine in Tetra Pak cartons uses 92% less packaging to deliver the same amount of wine in glass bottles; 54% less energy throughout the entire life cycle; 80% less greenhouse gases; and 35-40% fewer trucks.' That means real savings.

Which form of packaging Eden decides to go with could come down to its market: while the footprint associated with the manufacture of the PET bottles is higher than with the two other alternatives, its superior lightness makes it possibly the best choice for export to international markets. All three choices have their major upsides, and it will be up to Eden to choose which fits their brand and needs the best.

If Eden wants to continue using glass bottles, it might consider sourcing recycled bottles from somewhere nearby, or, if it still wants to use new bottles, to source them from a location closer to its winery than Melbourne to save in transport costs.

As far as labels are concerned, whether using one of the three new alternatives or glass, Eden might think about switching to eco-friendly inks. If using bottles or PET, it also has the option of moving to recycled paper labels.

Once the units are ready to be shipped, Eden could try using pulp instead of styrofoam shippers to ensure the safe transport of its stock.

It's a lot to think about. But with so many options available, it's easy to get started somewhere. Eden, for instance, may only feel ready to move on something that delivers immediate cost benefits, like the Tetra Pak. The important thing is to get thinking about how you can make sustainable packaging work––and not in the sense of having to tow some onerous environmental line, but in positive and expansive terms: how it can work for you and your brand, and how it can improve your bottom line.

 

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