PACKAGING waste could be reduced by an average of 20% today by simply reducing the packaging that many products are put in.
An estimated ten million tonnes of packaging waste is created every year so by reducing the packaging two million tonnes less would go to landfill.
With this in mind The Less Packaging Company (Less) has unveiled four new concept designs. The familiar packs have been redesigned and tested to highlight the immediate opportunity to move to more environmentally friendly alternatives.
The firm says the designs cost less to produce, use less energy, are as robust as existing packaging, are always more consumer friendly and, most importantly, there is less of it.
Less claims its re-designs fit well with existing widely available recycling schemes meaning more efficient use of resources and less need for recycling at all.
It’s widely acknowledged that consumers are concerned about the amount of packaging they have to throw away, as well as recycle, and they also often feel that products are offered in excessive packaging. The reality, Less says, is that many packs can easily be redesigned.
It is already working for a range of innovators including Marks and Spencer, Pepsi-Cola and Waitrose to reduce the amount of packaging needed from the point of manufacture to the store shelf.
“We as an industry have a responsibility to be designing the waste and non-recyclability out of packaging right now, it is what the consumer wants,” says Ian Bates, partner at Less.
“The expertise and technology to precycle is available today but sometimes other priorities get in the way. Packaging has an important role to play in getting products safely from the factory to the consumer but it can often be done more efficiently.”
