Paper is something that’s being used for a lot of packaging, including of course, food. There are now commissions that are looking to reform packaging, which focuses on the reusing and the returning of plastic bottles that are empty, along with aluminum cans. 

This is something that has been a challenge for a lot of different places, and with more regulations coming in, the goal that a lot of people are looking for is packaging that’s better for the environment and is working towards a circular economy for the businesses that are out there. 

What consumers think about Sustainability 

When it comes to sustainability, there are a lot of issues about not just the cans and the bottles but all kinds of food packaging. Green types of packaging are better for food and purchasing decisions, and this is something that a lot of people are even swaying their buying decisions on.  Over half of Italian families for example have started to move towards sustainable packaging.

With recyclability and the lack of overpacking and the less plastic that comes with this, there are many different benefits that come with this. 

Paper is preferred 

A lot of companies, including fruit and veggie, or even frozen food companies, are turning to paper packaging for this. one company that’s going this is Tonitto 1939, which is a famous gelato company. They want to make sure that the sorbets that they sell are in FSC-certified cardboard, which will reduce the greenhouse emissions by 75% in a lot of cases.

There is also the packaging from Naturelle, which is an egg product distributor, and this is made of almost 75% renewable materials as well, and it allows for the makeup of the CO2 emissions that are out there.

This is something that’s changing the packaging, and in fact, it’s caused cardboard usage to diminish by 30% in a lot of cases. Paper is also working in the glass world too.  There are now eco self-seal cardboard products, which are used in order to seal and secure products that are cylindrical in nature. It’s made from corrugated cardboard, and there is a latex adhesive that’s put over the top of this, in order to coat it. 

Reducing plastic 

The goal of paper packaging is to reduce, or even eliminate plastic that is there. A lot of people are looking to reduce PET packaging, which is harmful for the world. Then there is of course, the reduction of glass, which is also hard as it’s nowhere near sustainable.  There is also a decrease in aluminum too, which is another popular material but gets criticized for the sustainability problems. 

There are also “tethered caps” that are being put on these bottles. These are being used to recycle the product better, so that literally all parts are recycled in the process.

Then there is Nestle, who has managed to get over 85% recyclability on their packaging, especially plastic, and they’ve managed to reduce the virgin plastic by up to 14% in a lot of cases. This has also caused a lot of people to invest in creating a recycling community and infrastructure. 

So paper packaging is something that a lot of people are looking to use. The difference with this is we’re starting to see this come around. What will this mean for us as an infrastructure? Well, you can expect to see the role of paper get even more important with time very soon, and you should get ready for a lot of brands to move towards these eco-friendly alternatives that are here, and the benefits.