Be sustainable or don’t be at all

Packaging is used for three main purposes:

1. To facilitate the manipulation and use of the product: a packaging can dossify a product in quantities that are required by the consumer. Also conditions the product for logistic operations. 
2. To protect against external agents that can accelerate the chemical properties of the product. 
3. To promote the product and inform the consumer about the properties of the content, the use of it and the conservation or other additional information.

In the european strategy, the package represents a crucial role in the circular economy. That is why sustainability in packaging is and will be one of the main topics of innovation and competitiveness in the value chain. And that is why the has been a new law that will ban single-used plastic packaging in 2030. 

In this context, ecodesign will be a key element to develop packaging. 

How can I know if a package is sustainable?

In order to promote the production of sustainable packaging, the eco- labels have been created to attribute added value to products. Their aim is to:

1. Identify the products which are eco-friendly
2. Inform and persuade the consumers to choose eco-friendly products

These are the main eco-labels that you may recognise in packages:

Make sure your package can close the loop

The eco-design applies the theory of the life cycle, that consists in taking into consideration all the periods from the creation of the package to its final waste management. From the perspective of the circular economy, one of the main objectives is to make sure that we can close the loop  and revalue the waste of the package throughout recyclability, reusability or compostability. 

The main agents who are involved in the packaging eco-system are:

1. Material suppliers
2. Packaging converters
3. Packaging distributors
4. Consumers
5. Waste management
6. Waste recyclers 

When choosing a packaging you need to make sure that the one you choose is not only made with sustainable materials but also is possible to recycle or compost within your geographic zone. For example if a material is sustainable but in order to recycle that package, the only recycler that is able to compost it is in China, this is not sustainable. That is why you have to analyze the multiple roles of the different agents involved in this process. 

What do you need?

If you want to contact directly with sustainable packaging suppliers, you can visit our web, we will find them for you, just tell us what you need.