One-third of all pack materials to be eco-friendly by 2014, study claims
Sustainable packaging is a fast-growing segment of the global packaging industry and will grow to 32% of the total market by 2014, up from just 21% in 2009. That’s according to a new study from Pike Research. Notes the market intelligence company, the market for sustainable packaging is being driven by the fact that, in the industrialized world, packaging for all types of products has become both necessary and truly ubiquitous. And, as more people become “modern consumers” around the world, it is an increasing burden on producers, individuals, and the environment.
“The $429 billion global packaging industry is huge but extremely fragmented, with no clear market leaders,” says Pike Research managing director Clint Wheelock. “As such, the move toward sustainable packaging represents a broad-based effort by manufacturers, retailers, industry groups, and governments to promote the design of minimal packaging that can be easily reclaimed. A tremendous amount of innovation is going into reducing energy requirements to manufacture packaging and using more recyclable and compostable materials, but there is still a long way to go.”
The firm forecasts that plastic-based packaging, which represents 35% of all materials used, will be the fastest-growing sector of the sustainable packaging market over the next five years. Metal-based packaging, one of the easiest materials to recycle, will continue to be the sector with the highest percentage of sustainability—by 2014, more than 63% of metal-based packaging will be environmentally friendly.
Considerations reducing packaging’s impact
The study notes that environmentally responsible packaging needs to start with the basic principles of R3. Significant changes to current practices are required that include better design, materials innovation, and a better understanding of the total costs associated with packaging. Several key areas where changes can bring about a positive and long-term solution to the need to reduce the environmental impact of modern packaging include the following:
• Design minimal packaging that can be readily reclaimed
• Develop new, low-energy usage and environmentally responsible packaging materials
• Provide better data relating to the true cradle-to-cradle cost of packaging options
• Harmonize global regulations relating to reclaiming used packaging
• Monetize all used packaging to establish post-consumer value to help create a global recovery marketplace
The study, entitled “Sustainable Packaging,” assesses the current market conditions for packaging and outlines the future opportunities to create more environmentally responsible, sustainable, and eco-friendly packaging processes. The report examines key market drivers and challenges in various industries around the world and includes detailed five-year forecasts for the total packaging market as well as the sustainable packaging sector, segmented by packaging material categories and world regions.
An Executive Summary of the report is available for free download on Pike Research’s Web site.
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If we continue to push PLA as a "Sustainable Packaging Alternative" to reach the goals outlined above, the Rain Forests will be gone. Currently, an area the size of Greece is burned out of the Rain Forests each year to provide feedstock for Ethanol and PLA.
The Carbon Dioxide emitted from these fires alone is greater than all that produced by all the cars in the world. An equally damaging amount of CO2 absorption is gone due to the loss of the same forest.
90% of our new medicines come from Rain forests.
Soon this source of life-saving natural chemicals will be gone.
The cost of all foods will continue to escalate and the poor will pay with their lives. The World Health Organization states that in 2002 a child died every 10 seconds due to malnutrition related illnesses. By 2006 this had risen to every 6 seconds a child dies.
Is this not an insane race to destroy mankind?
There are other technologies that are much less harmful. PLA is not the answer.
I really hope that sustainable materials can be a lot more than that. I mean, it wasn't all that many years ago when packaging really only consisted of paper, cardboard and metal. Now we have so many plastics which are very detrimental to the environment and also to our health. Karen.
I mean, it wasn't all that many years ago when packaging really only consisted of paper, cardboard and metal. Now we have so many plastics which are very detrimental to the environment and also to our health.
Torrent downloads
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