/ By Karan Mudliar / Blog • Uncategorized/ • • • / 0 Comments

The implications of paperboard packaging replacing plastics

With an increased emphasis on being environmentally-friendly, many governments have reviewed their approach and have moved further in this direction. In the US, cities like Washington D.C (tax on plastic bags), San Francisco (complete ban on plastic bags), and Boston (tax and ban on single-use bags), have implemented their own laws. Around the world, Kenya, Chile, UK, Australia, and China have also enforced their own rules. Additionally, India enforced a ban on single-use plastics in July, 2018.

Most plastic bans include: PE bags, disposable plastic cutlery, disposable thermocol items, plastic wrap used for packaging and storage, non-woven polypropylene bags, plastic pouches for storing liquid, plastic packaging for food items, and plastic and thermocol decorations.

It has been determined that these plastics are the most harmful for the environment as they clog water bodies due to improper disposal, lead to ground water pollution, and disturb soil microbes.

With more and more countries adopting alternatives to plastic, the use of paperboard packaging has been gaining further acceptance. This has also been driven by a retail boom and the introduction and increased use of e-commerce. It is also important to note that paperboard packaging is consumer-friendly, provides excellent product protection, is lightweight, easy to transport and stack, and significantly easy to dispose of. However, the underlying and important aspect is that paperboard packaging is bio-degradable.

Given this it is no wonder that the paper packaging market is growing at a rate of 7.5%. In fact, industry estimates suggest that Amazon and Flipkart — top two players in the $17-billion ecommerce sector — consume between 1,200-1,400 tonnes of paper that goes into making boxes and printing bills.

For other large organizations such as Swedish furniture company IKEA, the switch-over to paperboard has been undertaken very quickly. And, as it is clear, the effects of paperboard packaging replacing plastics can greatly reduce climate impact, businesses are climbing on the sustainable bandwagon to underline their positive appeal for the environment.

 

 

Across the ocean, in the US, tech giant Apple has already outlined its longer-term vision in this matter. Through its October 2017 Paper and Packaging Strategy, it details how it “succeeded in reducing the plastic content of the iPhone 7 packaging by 84 per cent compared with that of the iPhone 6s.” Going forward, it is evident that this strategy is being used extensively with regard to its Apple’s smart speaker, Homepod. Here, “an incredibly complex paperboard construction with closures holds the speaker cord in place and there is also a setup to secure the plug.” And as has been mentioned, “there would be have been no doubt that plastic would have been the material of choice for this even up to 10 years ago.”

However, despite all of this, when it comes to replacing plastics there are still challenges that need to be overcome. Some of these include: the high cost of production caused by inadequate availability, the high cost of raw materials, a limited availability of good fibre, as well as technological obsolescence.

Further, major industries such as fresh and frozen foods, dairy, pharmaceuticals, beverages, snacks, and confectionery, have been severely impacted given their current extensive use of plastic packaging.

It is also evident that both the organized and unorganized sector are engaged in the packaging industry. Within the organized sector, SMEs that have been producing plastic packaging cannot quickly switch to paperboard and require time to do so. Thus, the plastic ban has adversely impacted sales and jobs in this sector. Many enterprises have also had to take up loans even though don’t have easy access to financing and funds. So despite the paper and paperboard markets growing rapidly there are still obstacles issues surrounding expansion of capacity.

Regarding the paper industry, it too has its challenges given the overall fragmentation of the market, which is served by around 500 various-sized mills. Further, the capacity for paper production has slowed down primarily due to a shortage of its key raw material – pulp wood. This is coupled with the rising prices of local waste paper. However, though this has been partially mitigated by renewed agroforestry initiatives, the industry has regularly requested for a policy to be implemented that allows access to degraded forest land for paper mills to raise pulp wood plantations for sustainable development. This, unfortunately, has yet to be undertaken.

In 2017, paper companies did not undertake price hikes due to factors such as competition from imports, stabilization in wood prices lower power, and fuel costs but by FY18, domestic paper prices had risen marginally.

In terms of supply there is a shortage of paperboard packaging and a study suggests that the paperboard segment will face a shortfall of 12.5 lac MT.

However, this supply deficit will mostly help players who are self-sufficient with raw materials and have cost optimization plans. It will also benefit major players in the industry who are using cash whilst adversely affecting the unorganized and SME sectors.

The shortfall in supply will also cause delays and disruptions in distribution and the delivery of goods produced as there is a lag for sufficient quantities of paperboard packaging material to enter the market. However, on the plus side, this may result in opportunistic price rises within paperboard packaging materials, that in turn, will raise the costs of goods overall.

It is clear that as technologies develop and more companies understand the reasons behind omitting plastics and looking towards alternatives, paperboard usage will increase. Though nations have adopted other materials at different rates and speeds, there has been a concerted effort on the part of governments, businesses, and environmental groups to push for steps to move away from plastic usage. It still remains to be seen whether current global conditions have already been too adversely effected to reverse the process but the increased move towards paperboard can only be seen as a positive sign.

/ By Karan Mudliar / Blog • Uncategorized/ • • • / 0 Comments

8 alternatives to plastic packaging

All products need to be packed in a safe secure packaging that not only provides the protection to the product but also adds to the aesthetic presentation of the product. Today plastic packaging is one of the most common and popular form of packing material. It is cheap, strong, and durable and can be moulded into any shape required. However plastic has one major disadvantage. It is not bio degradable. Once discarded, it goes into the landfills where it sits for thousands of years. With consumer becoming environmentally conscious there is a need to move away from plastic packaging and use more eco friendly alternatives. Most of these alternatives have been around for years. They just need a fresh perspective to add some aesthetic appeal. Here are some alternatives which are not only better than plastic, they also add to the aesthetic appeal of the product.

  1. Paper is degradable. Not only that, paper is also reusable many times: Brown paper bags were quite common until some years ago. They are now making a comeback. Paper is used to make paperboard that is in turn used to make strong boxes which are used commonly to pack small light items. Paperboard has come of age and can be used for making food grade packing as well. Paperboard based sandwich packs are quite common. Paperboard cups are also commonly used for serving beverages. These can be shredded and reused again for different (non food grade) products or can be put down for bio degradation. It is made of wooden pulp that is natural.
  2. Cardboard is a thick form of layered paper is also very common in packaging industry: Cardboard needs no introduction. It is very popular packing material in form of boxes and cartons. It comes in all sizes, for small hand held products such as mobiles and toys to large boxes well above 1 meter on each side. Corrugated cardboard boxes have good strength to handle heavy products. They can be carried unfolded, requiring minimal space and can be easily disposed off. In fact strong large cartons are now being reused at homes to make coffee tables and as storage space among other things. And they disintegrate quickly, just like paper.
  3. Corn Starch: Corn starch is used as a Styrofoam replacement in packaging. It has the strength similar to plastic. It is shaped in form of beans and peanuts for providing cushion in packing large products and in making packing trays for food items. If disposed properly it decomposes into water and carbon dioxide within months, which is much shorter than the decomposition time required for plastic. It is made from corn, which is cheap and readily available.
  4. Zip lock bags: Though these are made of plastic, they are designed to be reused. They are airtight plastic bags that can store any product, which they can accommodate. Many households reuse them for storing food products. They may not be easily decomposable, but they are definitely reusable which increases their usable life and reduces the stress on resources used to produce them.
  5. Glass by itself is made from plain silica: It is an excellent material to store food items as it is water tight, air tight and inert. It also lends a classy look to the product and well designed glass jars are quite presentable. The jars and bottles that have wind up caps instead of crowns can be reused as household storage for Jams, sources, marmalades and many other items. If nothing else, a well designed jar is used as decorative item by itself. It is not only degradable (it is just sand after all), it is highly reusable. In fact soda companies reuse most of their bottles. There’s no reason why a business cannot have a well designed glass container that lends an aesthetic look to their product and remain eco friendly.
  6. Jute has become a coming of age material when it comes to its use as packing material: It was used to make large gunny bags to carry produce and grain (such as potato, rice, wheat etc) in large quantities. But today it is being used as a chic packing material that comes in various shapes, sizes and colours. It gives a rustic, classy old world feel to the product while retaining the earthy look. It is used to pack speciality items such as Tea leaves, dry fruits, speciality wines and gift items. It certainly does lend a certain class to the product. Jute is strong and can carry good amount of weight in small size packing, making it ideal for shipping.
  7. Wood is totally eco friendly: It has been used as packing material for large items for very long time. Even though the plastic pallets all are rage in the industry, wooden pallets are still very commonly used in freight industry. Wooden crates have been used for long. With recent advances in cutting and carving tools, small wooden boxes have become popular to pack speciality items. These are now used to increase the perceived status of the product and are by themselves reusable. This makes them a very effective choice as a packaging material if you want to increase the status of your product.
  8. Various forms of metal have been used for packaging sensitive material: With recent advances, the metal, in form of aluminium cans, foils, steel cans and jars, it has again become popular. It can be reused by consumers in the home for storage, and can also be easily recycled. It has been used for packaging food products like Oils, tea and other aromatic substances that need to be kept away from light and air. The thin aluminium foils are used to pack candies and chocolates. A non reusable but recyclable form of packaging made of metal, is the very popular can of soft drink. These are crushed, melted and reused to make cans again. Metal packaging is very versatile. It has been around for a long time. With new innovation it has become cost effective and attractive.

 

Packaging can be fun. It can be reusable, recyclable and economic. Producers just need a little imagination to use eco friendly products and make their product elegant and attractive.