The sight of massive islands of plastic waste floating in the Pacific Ocean are just a small sample of unforgettable images that have heightened consumer awareness of the excessive plastic pollution both on land and sea.
Because only 9 percent of the plastic produced since the 1950s has been recycled, there will be around 12 billion tons of plastic litter in landfills and the environment by 2050.
Plastics don’t biodegrade. They only break down, slowly, into smaller fragments called microplastics, which are making their way into our food chain and subsequently into our bodies. The health risks of microplastics are not fully understood, but anti-plastic sentiment is already pushing sustainability trends in packaging.
The movement to reduce waste from plastic packaging is driven by government regulation, as well as by changing consumer preferences. These preferences are driving brand owners to replace plastic with renewable and recyclable alternatives and to address plastic in their sustainability goals.
Let’s take a deeper look at those three leading markets drivers:
To address the environmental crisis, government regulation has increased in many countries to help drive change and reduce the impact of plastics.
Certain single-use plastics (e.g., drinking straws, coffee stirrers, plastic bottles, plates, cups, utensils, shopping bags) have been identified as the leading contributors to plastic pollution and are the target of most legislation. While bans on polyethylene shopping bags have been in place in many parts of the world, the European Union (EU) and United Kingdom (UK) are leading the way in implementing wider bans on single-use plastics:
Public awareness of plastic waste in the environment has risen to an all-time high.
Google Trends’ “Interest over Time” index shows interest in plastic waste and pollution quadrupled in 2019 compared to 2016. A few findings from the 2018 Paper & Packaging Consumer Trends report confirm this:
Consumer research firm Mintel predicts sustainability is among the top five trends that will impact the packaging industry over the coming year: “Brands will be called to keep marine conservation at the forefront of packaging development.”
Packaging trend-watchers say the sustainable packaging trend is here to stay, and brands are making serious commitments to act upon the anti-plastics outcry.
Several well-known consumer goods companies have committed to reducing plastic content in their packaging:
Today we're announcing that we will invest up to CHF 2 billion to lead the shift from virgin plastics to food-grade recycled plastics and to accelerate the development of innovative sustainable packaging solutions ♻️🌎 #CircularEconomy
— Nestlé EU Affairs (@NestleEU) January 16, 2020
Read more: https://t.co/bYTddKLG0H pic.twitter.com/LXknKH038M
Large retailers, especially in Europe, are also joining the movement to reduce plastic packaging.
For example, UK retailers Iceland and Lidl recently announced goals to remove plastic from certain product lines. In February, French retailer Carrefour signed a French national pact to phase out plastic packaging by 2025, along with other companies including L’Oréal, Nestlé, Danone and Unilever.
In 2018, supermarket chain EkoPlaza opened plastic-free shopping aisles in 74 branches.
To learn how sustainability trends could affect the pulp and paper industry, click below to read Fisher International’s complete study “From Plastic to Paper How Will Sustainability Trends Impact the Pulp and Paper Industry?”