Smithers identifies major strategies supporting increased sustainability of flexible packaging
May 12, 2021In response to package waste issues, climate
change and legislative activity, sustainability is now a major development area
for flexible packaging design. As outlined in a new study by Smithers, The Future of
Sustainable Flexible Packaging to 2026, there are several package development strategies that are
being considered to improve the sustainability of packaging. These include
reductions in package weight, recyclable packaging, biodegradable packaging,
sustainably sourced packaging, reusable packaging, recycled content into packaging,
and investments in waste management infrastructure.
The soon-to-be-released report from Smithers reviews and compares the
strategies being adopted by the flexible packaging supply chain to improve the
environmental profile of flexible packaging and provides a list of actionable
approaches being considered by the whole flexible packaging value chain.
These strategies will vary by geographic region due to vastly different waste
management infrastructure, legislation, consumer habits and packaging forms
that exist today in different parts of the world. As such, development
strategies that work in one region can be ineffective in others due to these
local differences.
A summary of the major strategies that are expounded on in the report are as
follows:
Reduce
This strategy reduces package weight per product use to limit the amount of
waste entering the environment. It is the precursor to other strategies related
to the EU’s Waste Hierarchy and has been a fundamental strategy within the
linear economy sustainability model. As the report period progresses,
light-weighting of existing flexible packs is expected to slow as priorities
shift to more circular developments. More meaningful weight-saving
developments, such as rigid to flexible conversions and refill packaging, are
expected to intensify.
Recyclable
For this report, recyclability is defined as packaging designed to better fit
recycling infrastructure to enable more economic recovery of packaging waste.
As such, recyclable packaging is an enabler of the circular economy and is part
of the second element of the EU’s Waste Hierarchy. Over the five-year period
covered by the report, intense efforts will take place to convert current
non-recyclable flexible packs to recyclable structures to avoid pending
taxation, EPR fees and bans in some countries. Many major brand owners and
package suppliers have committed to have recyclable packaging by 2025.
Reuse
Reusable packaging is defined by the EU as “packaging which has been conceived,
designed and placed on the market to accomplish within its life cycle multiple
trips or rotations by being refilled or reused for the same purpose for which
it was conceived”. Reusable packaging is the first element on the EU’s Waste
Hierarchy and is being promoted to enhance the circular economy. Little
activity is expected to advance reusable flexible packaging up to 2026. The
strategy is best suited to robust rigid packaging, which can be easily cleaned
and remains undamaged after use, collection, and refilling. However, flexibles
in the form of refill packaging are likely to increase to enable reuse of rigid
packaging by in-home refilling.
Recycled content
The inclusion of recycled materials back into packaging is another key
strategy. It completes the circle of the circular economy and is part of the
second element of the EU’s Waste hierarchy. Greater use of recycled content is
expected in flexible packaging up to 2026 to meet public demand and avoid
future taxation and legislative mandating of recycled content.
Sustainable sourcing
Development of non-oil-based plastics is an emerging trend, especially for
plastic packaging. This strategy seeks to shift manufacturing of traditional
plastics, such as PE, PP, PET and others, to more sustainably sourced starting materials
such as biomass. Up to 2026, greater use of sustainable plastics is expected,
though use is unlikely to move beyond single-digit percentage in flexible
packaging. Recycled plastic is likely to be favoured due to greater
circularity. Paper-based flexible packaging is not expected to advance greatly.
Biodegradable
Biodegradable packaging remains an important strategy for sustainable package
development. It involves the use of specific materials that naturally degrade
in the environment and especially in industrial composting units. According to
EU legislation, composting is a recycling process and is therefore part of the
second element of the EU’s Waste Hierarchy. In developed countries,
biodegradable plastic packaging is not expected to advance greatly up to 2026
due to questionable circularity and unfavourable legislation. In developing
countries, biodegradable packaging is seen as a short-term measure by brand
owners to limit pollution and marine litter while waste management
infrastructure is developed.
Waste infrastructure
Improved waste management infrastructure is needed to enhance collection,
sorting, recycling and energy recovery of packaging waste, and to limit
pollution. This has become a key area of focus, with numerous recent examples
of infrastructure development by the packaging value chain. Investment in waste
infrastructure by the package supply chain will be increasingly important to
2026. In developed countries it increases recyclate availability; in developing
countries, it limits pollution.