What Is Sustainable Packaging and How Can It Help Your Brand?

Incorporating eco-friendly packaging is one way in which businesses can show their commitment to sustainability

It only takes a second to unwrap your latest purchase and throw away the packaging, but the repercussions last far longer. Evidence of the destructive impact of plastic waste on the natural world is a sight that's becoming increasingly familiar—from the viral image of a turtle with a six-pack ring caught around its neck to the Great Pacific Garbage Patch in the North Pacific Ocean.

In fact, according to a review carried out by the Australian government’s science agency, CSIRO, plastic bags and flexible packaging are the biggest killers of marine life in the ocean.

As the conversation around plastic and other waste has gained momentum, consumers have increasingly expressed concern and frustration at the lack of commitment shown by many companies to rethink their business models and reduce harmful waste, as well as a tendency to mislead consumers through greenwashing.

However, increased consumer awareness—especially from younger generations—is driving change, and manufacturers and retailers all over the world have begun to respond to public outcry by exploring sustainable alternatives.

If you run a business and are looking for ways to make your packaging more sustainable, or are simply interested from a consumer perspective, read on to find out more.

What is sustainable packaging?

Sustainable packaging is any packaging that has a reduced environmental impact compared to non-sustainable alternatives. Many people mistakenly assume that the term is defined by whether a material can be recycled or not, but sustainable packaging goes much further. It requires looking at the entire supply chain to assess the environmental impact at every stage, from sourcing to end consumer use and disposal.

A list that's rapidly growing, there are many options for sustainable packaging on the market. For example, paper or card-based products like corrugated bubblewrap, fibers such as hemp, recycled materials, and bioplastics. What you'd choose for your business will largely depend on your product, brand identity, and how you're going to store or ship it.

To give some general guidelines, the Sustainable Packaging Coalition lists the following eight criteria for packaging to be considered sustainable:

- Is beneficial, safe, and healthy for individuals and communities throughout its life cycle.

- Meets market criteria for performance and cost.

- Is sourced, manufactured, transported, and recycled using renewable energy.

- Optimizes the use of renewable or recycled source materials.

- Is manufactured using clean production technologies and best practices.

- Is made from materials healthy throughout the life cycle.

- Is physically designed to optimize materials and energy.

- Is effectively recovered and utilized in biological and/or industrial closed-loop cycles.

Why is it important for e-commerce?

E-commerce is big business. For several years now, consumers have been moving away from the high streets and towards online shopping, and this habit has only been accelerated by the pandemic. But this trend comes at a price. Individually-shipped items often use more packaging than bulk deliveries to a retail store, meaning increased waste, which is undoubtedly having a huge impact on the environment.

Aside from the obvious ethical arguments, opting for more sustainable packaging for your e-commerce business is important for several reasons:

Your consumer cares
Consumer awareness is influencing their spending habits. More and more customers are looking for signs the brands they buy from are committed to the long-term welfare of both people and planet. This is true especially of younger generations, who will even switch to different brands based on their commitment to the environment. Opting for more sustainable practices is therefore a way to increase that all-important consumer loyalty.

Governments are taking action
Many countries have begun to introduce even more ambitious steps to drive sustainability that directly affect packaging, such as demanding fees for using non-recyclable materials or even a direct ban altogether on things such as single-use plastic.

This trend will only grow as governments are forced to listen to public opinion and take more stringent measures to curb excess waste. For businesses, this means it will become increasingly difficult to ignore the need to steer towards more sustainable practices, and could actually be detrimental to companies that are unable to adapt to the changing landscape.

It can even be cost-effective
When we think of sustainability, we immediately assume it comes at a cost. While certain materials can indeed be more expensive, one of the goals of sustainable packaging is looking at how you can reduce the amount of packaging used in the first place, which in turn makes it more cost-effective. Sending smaller packages that cut out any excess material also reduces shipping costs and the space needed for storing products.

Sustainability is not a “quick win”, but the message is clear; if you want your business to survive and flourish in years to come, the sooner you begin looking at ways to be more sustainable, the better.

Interested in getting started packaging design yourself? Elena Sancho is the creative director of Tatabi Studio and a designer specializing in sustainable branding and packaging.

In her Domestika course, Sustainable Packaging Design for E-commerce, she teaches you how to create attractive, innovative, and responsible product packaging, so that you can run a successful online business that’s environmentally friendly.

Have fun and use your creativity to design a complete sustainable packaging system, including designing the container for the product, a protective box, a gift pack, and a shipping case.

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- Introduction to Ecological Packaging, a course by Tati Guimarães