2019 Christmas packaging for confectionery

According to a new survey by British market research institute YouGov, conducted among more than 2,100 consumers, 56 percent take the packaging’s impact on the environment into account when purchasing food at Christmastime.

Which is why more and more manufacturers are responding to the customer demand for more sustainability. As a result, they are no longer using glitter in Christmas packaging for confectionery, and instead are employing recyclable and compostable packaging materials. Some are also providing tips on how to recycle gift wrapping and are switching to innovative cellulose.

Since 2009, Nestlé’s Quality Street packaging has been fully recyclable. The colourful confectionery wrappers are biodegradable and can be composted along with garden waste. The foil and tins can be disposed of in the same way as normal aluminium packaging.

SUSTAINABLY PACKAGED CONFECTIONERY AT MARKS & SPENCER

British department store chain Marks & Spencer aims to do without glitter on packaging this Christmas. From greeting cards and wrapping paper to labels, gift bags, calendars and crackers, the festive packaging is largely recyclable. By doing so, the company primarily focuses on the impact of microplastics on the environment. Which is why any designs that were previously decorated with glitter have been replaced by innovative paper patterns or thin foils, thus maintaining the festive shimmer.

By the end of 2020, Marks & Spencer’s entire range of cards and wrapping paper is to follow suit. Today, the majority of greeting cards already comes in a paper wrapper and is no longer protected by a thin plastic cover, as was previously so often the case. Flowers and plants sprayed with glitter and single-use packaging for food products are also on the decline at M&S. 71.4 percent of the festive Big One Selection packaging with its 600 grams of sugary content is now already recyclable. To additionally motivate the customers themselves to recycle more, the backs of all rolls of Marks & Spencer’s Christmas wrapping paper contain helpful tips on the disposal and recyclability of the packaging materials.

This both food and environmentally friendly innovation was developed by sustainable cellulose foil supplier Futamura. Optically easily mistaken for conventional plastic, this material is made of wood pulp and is completely biodegradable in household compost in about ten weeks. The cellulose foil meets the European and American standards for industrially compostable packaging and has been certified by the Austrian TÜV (Technical Inspection Association). A label on the packaging provides consumers with information on how to compost the packaging along with their food waste.

From Advent calendars and crackers to toys made out of recyclable materials: With innovative material and packaging solutions, many other companies are also contributing to making Christmas not just a time of joy for humans but for the environment as well. British supermarket chain Sainsbury’s, for example, no longer uses plastic in its Christmas crackers.