Unfortunately, every day we get to hear about the dramatic climate changes and the environmental degradation that is harming our planet. Melting ice caps, record droughts, and loads of trash piling up on our beaches and oceans damaging marine life.
The non-recyclable waste we have used in our daily life for ages has escalated this environment change immensely. The plastics we have been using take hundreds of years to decompose.
Sustainable packaging seems the only way to help reduce this destruction. This method of packaging enables us to cut down carbon emissions and produces less waste. It’s a significant solution in terms of keeping the planet healthy.
Here we are going to discuss what exactly is this phenomenon about and what are its benefits in terms of protecting the planet.
What is Eco-Friendly Packaging?
Eco-friendly packaging is an environment-friendly method of packing your goods using recyclable and renewable materials that are safe and secure for the planet and people both.
This method produces little to no environmental waste. We use decomposable and biodegradable packing materials, and most important of all, it is safe for the environment.
5 Benefits of Eco-friendly packaging:
1. Less emission of Carbon:
Green packaging is not just about shifting from one material to biodegradable material; it is more than that. Starting from the manufacturing process, if we look at the amount of carbon being produced in the air through the burning of fossil fuels in our production units is tremendous.
A carbon footprint is the number of greenhouse gases being released into the atmosphere, which damages our ozone layer.
The usage of environment-friendly packaging emits less carbon during production and significantly reduces the consumption of heavy-energy resources.
2. Recyclable and Reusable:
It has been known that businesses that offer some kind of commission to the consumers who return the empty bottles and containers result in the prevention of mass-production of more materials. Not only it saves cost, but it is also cheaper than buying new boxes for your relevant products.
Moreover, recycled cardboard and wrapping sheets are generally available and are produced from earth-friendly organic materials. Usage of such cardboard packaging can effectively impact on the environment as it inevitably reduces the load and decomposes quickly, which can keep the planet healthy.
3. Organic Materials:
The usage of natural materials is healthier for both people and the environment. Less use of synthetic chemicals will result in a healthier environment for both people and the planet.
Cornstarch is an organic material that has attributes similar to plastic and comes from natural corn grains. This can be used as an excellent packaging material in many situations.
There is another option called mushroom packaging that is more organic and even better than cornstarch. It is better because agricultural waste is added to the mushroom roots to make natural materials. Making use of organic waste makes it an excellent biodegradable packaging option.
Other organic materials, such as seaweed, are also excellent packaging materials that can be considered.
4. No Harmful plastic:
Excessive usage of plastics has led to massive destruction to both the environment as well as marine life.
Using earth-friendly materials allows you to use lesser plastic. A lot of materials use an excessive amount of plastic, which has been a significant reason for global warming on today’s date. By consuming environment-friendly packaging, we can reduce the usage of plastic and its adverse effects.
Petrochemicals are one of the most commonly used plastics that require a large amount of energy at the time of production. They litter roads, parks, roadways, and coasts when they are junked. These materials can add to health problems when consumed with food or cosmetic products.
5. Improves Customer base and Brand Image:
Traditional packaging contains toxic ingredients. This may not be of much importance to some people, but it is important to many others. By using biodegradable materials, you can increase your potential customers as more and more people would appreciate your approach for a green, supportive environment. It does create a big difference if your products are edible or have skin application. BPA and other harmful compounds are well known for reacting with food and cosmetics. That is where green food packaging should be encouraged as it does not harm the food and protects it staying earth-friendly. According to a study, 78 per cent of people showed an increased level of trust in brands that use eco-friendly business principles. Some reports suggest that people are even willing to pay higher prices for the brands that use green business ideology as they are more than willing to spend extra for the earth’s protection.
Using this effective method can boost your image in the market and among the customers. This packaging is not more sustainable but offers more protection to your items. Knowing that a company supports sustainable methods, many shoppers put their trust in that brand more than the others. After all, corporate responsibility is all about saving the environment, but it is about pleasing the customers as well. Our lack of concern towards our environment has been causing tremendous effects on the well-being of our society. Our approach towards the green packaging material is one of the many things we could do to create a healthier world than the one we live in currently.
There has been seen a definite shift towards eco-friendly packaging in recent years. Using earth-friendly materials for packaging has enormous benefits, whether it is influenced environmentally or economically.
