Packing the right materials

More than ever before, brand owners need to seriously consider the environmental profile and appropriateness of the material used in their packaging designs. The RMIT University Centre for Design ’s Dr Karli Verghese explains.

When the National Packaging Covenant (NPC) was re-signed in 2005, new targets and key performance indicators were included along with the requirements of the Environmental Code of Practice for Packaging (ECoPP), Schedule 5 of the NPC.

When selecting packaging materials, everyone in the product packaging design process should now consider issues such as product characteristics, shelf display, efficiencies in logistics, marketing and packaging material costs.

There is also an increasing need to focus on the environmental issues associated with materials and their end-of-life compatibilities and waste treatment.

Ambitious recycling collection rates must now be achieved, and this will only happen through a combination of careful material selection, increased availability of collection and reprocessing systems, and improved dialogue among everyone in the supply chain from packaging manufacturers to recyclers, governments, and from brand owners to consumers.

Cyclic recovery

In October 2005, the topic of conversation at the Sustainable Packaging Alliance (SPA) 8th Roundtable was Ecodesign and Material Selection Creating Cyclic Packaging.

Developing the ability to design packaging systems which can be cycled continuously through natural (biological) or technical systems, and therefore create zero waste, is one of the major challenges in improving packaging sustainability.

The base material may be technically recyclable, but necessary additives (e.g. pigments), added components (e.g. labels and inks), constructive features (e.g. lamination) or contamination (e.g. product residues), often obstruct recycling options.

Biodegradable materials may provide an alternative for some applications, but often require modification to meet effectiveness and efficiency requirements, leading to reduced composting performance.

Packaging recovery

Cyclic ecodesign strategies for packaging start with considering how the packaging may be recovered, for example by choosing recyclable or compostable material, and eliminating any potential contaminants such as non-compatible labels or coatings.

The issues vary between material types, so dialogue with waste collectors, recyclers, downstream users and composters is essential during the design process.

Signatories should also ensure they use the ECoPP which can help guide them through the decision making process.

Away from home

Substantial increases in the capture of packaging materials ‘Away from Home’ (AFH) are needed to ensure that NPC targets set for each individual material category are achieved.

This was one of the topics covered in SPA’s 9th Roundtable held in March 2006 entitled Recycling Packaging: The Challenges Ahead.

50% of packaging is consumed AFH, it is estimated, including; public place consumption such as parks, beaches, shopping centres, events, roads (from consumption in vehicles); office and institutional consumption and commercial; and ‘on-premise’ consumption (the return of consumable to producer, e.g. beer bottles).

AFH is now a major focus, marking a major shift from the past, when recycling efforts were all based around kerbside collection, to a future where AFH is at the forefront of efforts to raise recycling rates.

Expanding facilities

More extensive collection facilities for packaging consumed away from home are part of the future picture in the drive to reduce environmental impacts of packaging and achieve the NPC targets.

Alongside this, expansion of existing collection and reprocessing facilities to include materials such as polypropylene and polystyrene will be needed - hitherto defined under the NPC as ‘non-recyclable’.

Here again, implementation of the ECoPP by companies in the packaging supply chain will help to ensure that their products are designed to facilitate efficient recycling.

Quick evaluation

Signatories to the NPC commit to reduce environmental impacts arising from the production, use and disposal of packaging.

However, most have limited access to available information or tools on the life cycle impacts of their packaging, and no way of objectively demonstrating that they are addressing packaging system sustainability.

The prototype Packaging Impact Quick Evaluation Tool (PIQET), developed by the SPA in partnership with industry, will establish the means to easily and quickly use complex life cycle assessment (LCA) data and packaging waste management and recycling data to assess and demonstrate sustainable packaging business practices.

PIQET will enable companies to evaluate packaging from raw material extraction, through manufacture, filling and product/packaging distribution and on to post-consumer packaging disposal, re-use and material reclamation.

The tool will report against a range of environmental indicators including depletion of non-renewable resources, generation of greenhouse gases, energy use, landfill and litter, the NPC Key Performance Indicators and the ECoPP.