4 Common Mistakes to Avoid When Choosing Eco-Friendly Packaging

Well, it’s official, people are indeed willing to pay more for sustainability. This means that, from a business perspective, going green is more important than ever.

As consumers demand sustainable, greener options in terms of both produce and packaging, businesses worldwide are finally stepping up their efforts to be more environmentally conscious, particularly in terms of packaging.

Plastic packaging may have been the go-to packaging material of choice for decades, but as more research is conducted into its safety, both for us and the environment, it’s clear that alternatives need to be found, and quickly.

One of the easiest ways for businesses to appease their customers and help the environment in the process is by switching from plastic to sustainable materials when it comes to their packaging. As the sustainable packaging industry is now more innovative than ever, businesses are spoilt for choice when it comes to picking a sustainable packaging material.

Unfortunately, not all sustainable packaging is created equal which is why it’s so important to make the right choice. To help you do precisely that, here’s a look at several common mistakes to avoid when choosing eco-friendly packaging.

Mistake 1: Assuming Your Business Won’t Benefit from Sustainable Packaging

One of the most common mistakes that businesses make when it comes to sustainable packaging, is not using sustainable packaging at all.

As we highlighted earlier, consumers are willing to pay extra for sustainable produce and packaging, so from a business perspective going green is a no-brainer.

Not only can sustainable packaging help increase profits, it also offers a variety of additional benefits too. As well as helping to build brand awareness and promote customer loyalty, it can also help reduce transport costs. Aluminum packaging, for example, is growing increasingly popular in a variety of industries and as it is much lighter in weight, transportation and shipping costs are much lower. This also helps the environment as it reduces emissions.

So, not only can you do your bit to help the planet, but by going green and embracing sustainable packaging you can also maximize profits, build customer loyalty, build your brand, and reduce overheads at the same time. Still think sustainable packaging won’t benefit your company?

Mistake 2: Getting Suckered in By Bioplastics

Due to the health and environmental impacts associated with plastics, especially from plastic packaging, bioplastics have emerged as a more sustainable option. Despite many of them indeed proving more sustainable than plastic, they’re hardly eco-friendly, or cost-effective for that matter.

Bioplastics are a form of plastic derived from sustainable, biological materials such as oils, fats, and vegetables. They are considered to be more eco-friendly, and sustainable than plastics derived from fossil fuels, but they are certainly not environmentally friendly by any stretch of the imagination.

Many bioplastics cannot biodegrade or break down fully, plus the manufacturing process relies upon a great deal of energy consumption. There are also agricultural concerns as well, as experts are worried that, as demand for them grows, this may result in an increase in harmful pesticides and chemical fertilizers to grow the produce needed to create them.

Bioplastics may be greener than regular plastic, but in terms of packaging for your produce, there are so many better options. Materials such as: aluminum, cardboard, paper, glass, mushroom packaging, compostable packaging and more besides are all far better choices.

Mistake 3: Not Factoring in Energy Usage During Recycling

Despite the fact that recycling old packaging is far more sustainable than simply throwing it in the trash and sending it to landfill, it’s important to factor energy usage into the whole recycling process.

When products are recycled, the process of course uses energy, which affects the environment in some form. The more energy that is used, the more emissions this creates and the higher the carbon footprint.

Recycling products like paper and cardboard for example, uses around 70% - 75% less energy, respectively, than producing the materials from new. Recycling glass uses, on average, 40% less energy than producing it from new. Aluminum packaging, however, is the clear leader here as it can be recycled indefinitely and uses 95% less energy than making it from new.

Recycling plastic uses around 75% less energy, but the downside is that it can often only be recycled a certain number of times before it is of no use. Aluminum packaging such as drinks cans, though, can be recycled over and over again.

Mistake 4: Assuming That Sustainable Packaging is More Expensive

Finally, one of the most common reasons why some businesses are hesitant to provide sustainable packaging options is that they assume that sustainable packaging is going to be more expensive.

In reality, there are plenty of affordable, eco-friendly economical packaging options that are far cheaper than mass-produced plastics. Again, materials like paper, cardboard, and aluminum are great choices here as they’re affordable, lightweight, highly recyclable, and readily available.