Is flexible packaging as sustainable as it claims to be? Yes flexible packaging is manufactured using less plastic than rigid packaging resulting in less plastic to transport and dispose of, but flexible packaging’s sustainability may not be as straightforward as perceived.
Flexible packaging advocates boast its sustainable advantages, which are mainly true, however if these claims are exaggerated they could result in serious backlash. Unfortunately the method for quantifying sustainability is subjective. Flexible packaging’s source reduction can be a competitive advantage. Although the more easily quantifiable benefits, such as storage and transport, might reside more with supply chains than with the consumer.
To win the consumer, companies should make true product sustainability claims. Companies should avoid overselling product sustainability claims and expect consumers to think of sustainability as a tie breaker when all other factors are equivalent.
Growth for flexible packaging could be attributed to the utilization of technologies to provide competitive advantages. Examples of this are innovations that allow for multilayer structures for better barrier protection, the ability to create an interlocking strip system to store product for long periods of time without exposure, and producing see-through packaging for product visibility.
To read the entire article please visit:
http://www.greenerpackage.com/source_reduction/flexible_packaging_and_source_reduction
Source: Greener Package
