Flexible Packaging could Save 26 Million Tons of Packaging Material

The world has understood that we cannot go on treating our environment the way we do now. For nearly 25 years the international community has therefore met at the UN Climate Conference and agreed on ever stricter climate targets in order to get to grips with the CO₂ upward spiral. The measures are wide and varied.

The packaging industry has made its products more sustainable in terms of recycling, materials and processes, thereby substantially improving its environmental performance.  

In perspective the aim is to make packaging part of a circular economy. The focus here is no longer just on simple recycling but also on material losses across the complete lifecycle with food waste, use of resources and amounts of waste as key parameters. They all have to be reduced.

According to information from the Federation Flexible Packaging Europe (FPE),flexible packaging is more resource-efficient than alternative types of packaging since it requires less material and energy throughout its entire lifecycle.

Flexible packaging saves more resources than it consumes – according to the alliance of more than 80 companies in Europe. Therefore, they say, flexible packaging only accounts for 10% of the carbon footprint if the complete lifecycle of a foodstuff is considered. The remaining 90% is accounted for by food production and consumption.

If all food was enveloped in flexible packaging, the federation continues its consideration, the carbon footprint of all packaging used in the European Union could be reduced by a vast 40% – even if the recycling ratio was as low as 0%. This corresponds to 1% of all greenhouse gas emissions of European countries added up and would save 26 million tons of packaging materials in total.

Because: flexible packaging contains more than 40% of all the food in Europe but it only accounts for as little as 10% of the packaging material.

Like other packaging, flexible packaging can also help to curb food losses and waste – a central theme in debates about sustainability. After all, one third of all food produced worldwide ends up not being consumed ever. This means resources are wasted unnecessarily and greenhouse gases emitted for nothing.   

Thanks to suitable packaging food can be protected along the complete value chain and thereby reach consumers safely and intact. Furthermore, this can extend its shelf life and improve its storage ability.  

One of the big benefits of flexible packaging in this context is flexible portioning. Formats can easily be adapted and, as a consequence, leftovers on plates and in packages be reduced.