(Importance Of Plastic Packaging – Part 1)
3. Plastic Packaging and Sustainable Development
Plastic packaging saves energy
Because it is lightweight, it helps save energy while transporting wrapped items – Reduced fuel use, lower emissions, and cost savings for distributors, retailers, and consumers.
A yogurt pot made of glass weighs approximately 85 grams, whereas one made of plastic weighs only 5.5 grams. In addition, in a lorry carrying a product packed in glass jars, the packaging would account for 36% of the load. If put in plastic pouches, the packaging would account for only 3.56%. To deliver the same amount of yogurt, three trucks are required for glass pots and only two for plastic pots.
Plastic packaging is an optimal use of resources
It has a high strength-to-weight ratio, allowing it to pack a given amount of product more efficiently than traditional materials.
Moreover, it has been demonstrated that if society did not have access to plastic packaging and had to rely on other materials, overall package usage, mass, energy, and GHG emissions would rise.
(Source: PlasticEurope)
Plastic packaging prevents food waste
Our homes account for over 50% of all food waste in the the world. For example, we throw away 7.2 million tonnes of food and drink from our homes, with more than half of it being food and drink that we could have consumed. Wasting this food costs the average household £480 per year, which rises to £680 for a family with children, or almost £50 each month.
Since plastic-packed products are durable and sealable, they protect items from deterioration and increases shelf life. Shelf life can be extended from 5 to 10 days using modified environment plastic packaging, reducing food loss in retailers from 16% to 4%.
Traditionally, grapes were offered in loose bunches. Grapes are now sold in sealed trays, ensuring that the loose ones remain with the bunch. This has decreased retail waste by more than 20%.
Plastic packaging: continuous improvements through innovation
The world plastics packaging business has a good track record of innovation.
Technical breakthroughs and design flair have lowered the amount of plastic products required to pack a given quantity of product throughout time while maintaining the pack’s strength and durability. For example, a 1 litre plastic detergent bottle that weighed 120gms in 1970 now weighs only 43gms, a 64% decrease.
From 1999 to 2004, society’s consumption increased by 20%. However, the usage of plastic packing increased by only 4%.
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