Compostable packaging vs. lightweighting packaging
A lot of packaging on the supermarket shelves is overweight. Lightweighting this packaging is one solution to reducing packaging waste. However should there be more focus on developing packaging that is 100% biodegradable and compostable. The question we ask is;
Is it more environmentally friendly to use compostable packaging or to lightweight packaging that ultimately goes to landfill?
posted by James Ross Consulting @ 5:01 PM
4 Comments
4 Comments:
As a 25 year packaging professional, I can say...either is good.
Horses for courses.
If your product requires heavy packaging, then it should probably be recyclable, but you need to know whether the environmental impact is lower than just landfilling.
If your product can be packaged successfully in flexible, then your packaging environmental footprint is probably low, but there is no sensible way of recycling the package, as the footprint of recycling is too high. This is where compostable/degradable becomes a logical choice.
Causing even greater confusion, it depends where you live. In Australia, trees and water are scarce resources; in Scandinavia, trees grow like weeds, and water is the least of anyone's concerns. The right answer is geographically determined.
Finally, landfill is quoted as a major driver. For all the enormous quantities of waste, the one thing Australia does not lack is holes in the ground, including right near or even inside major city boundaries.
In contrast to Europe, landfill avoidance per se makes no sense - we are diggin holes as fast as half the world could fill them.
So, no easy answer folks
PS to my last comment.
Has anyone looked at the environmental impact of the PRODUCT compared to the packaging. Food for thought....
I agree with much of the above comment but would like to suggest the challenge is in the question. "more environmentally friendly" is a very vague concept. If the question was 'which one in the end will be a better step in the right direction towards sustainability' then one can really attempt to prioritize the problem. Issues such (as the above comment notes)location and weight will be considered in the critical prioritization, but in the end we will never build a sustainable society with any products going into a landfill. Eventually everything will either have to be kept in closed technical loops or compostable. That ultimate vision needs to be kept in mind.
I am in the process of starting my own sustainable restaurant. I was wondering if anyone could recommend a company who sells sustainable take-out packaging.
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