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There is no such thing as the ideal packaging

Why filling stations and "bio-plastics" are not good alternatives and what role product design and consumers play.

The ideal packaging

Is there the ideal packaging? Packaging protects products and consumer goods. Cardboard boxes, glass bottles, plastic tubes and the like keep their contents fresh, make transport safe and make it easier to store. Packaging thus makes a significant contribution to reducing food waste, for example. However ends up Packaging usually sooner than later in the garbage - and far too often in nature. We all know pictures of plastic-polluted waters and beaches, of coffee mugs on the roadside, beverage cans in the forest or disposable bags that the wind has blown into a treetop. In addition to this obvious environmental pollution, improperly disposed of plastic packaging also ends up microplastics in bodies of water and ultimately ingested by animals and humans.

In 2015, 40 percent of the plastics produced in Germany were made for packaging purposes. Unpackaged shops and numerous self-experiments by ambitious people show that a significant reduction in the consumption of packaged products is very possible, but not in every area and without great effort. So no packaging is always the ideal packaging.

The devil is in the details

A good example is the cosmetics product category. At first glance, ideal packaging made of glass in connection with filling stations seems very promising. Some drug stores already offer such a model. But: “Anyone who works with filling stations must always keep the stations and jars hygienically clean and preserve the cosmetics. To ensure this, chemical agents must be used. That may not be a problem for conventional cosmetics. But if you want to use natural cosmetics consistently and are guaranteed not to use microplastics and chemical ingredients, you will not be able to use the filling station model, ”explains CULUMNATURA- Managing Director Willi Luger.

Error bio-plastic

A big mistake of the present is that so-called "bio-plastics" can solve the problem. These “biobased polymers” consist of plant-based raw materials that are obtained from maize or sugar beet, for example, but they too have to be burned at temperatures of more than a hundred degrees. For this, in turn, energy is required. It would be nice that sacks made of bio-plastic simply rot without a trace like autumn leaves, but that's not the case. If they land in the wrong place, the bio-packaging also pollutes the habitat of numerous animals, ends up in their stomachs or wraps around their necks. For the cultivation of vegetable raw materials, the rainforest also has to give way, which puts the ecosystem under further pressure and endangers biodiversity. So alternatives made from so-called "bio-plastic" are not ideal packaging either.

“We give a lot of thought to the topic of ideal packaging and will always choose the most compatible variant. We haven't found the ideal solution yet, ”says Luger. “We do what is possible. Our shopping bags, for example, are made of grass paper. The cut grass from Germany grows resource-efficiently and in the production of the paper, water is saved compared to conventional paper made of wood fibers. The tubes for our hair gel require less plastic because they are extra thin and we use shredded old cardboard as filling material in the shipping. In addition, the Gugler printing company, which has been printing our packaging for years, uses particularly environmentally friendly printing processes, ”adds the natural cosmetics pioneer.

Less packaging is more

The production of glass, on the other hand, is generally associated with a very high expenditure of energy and its heavy weight makes transport a climate killer. The following applies here in particular: the longer the material is in use, the better its ecological balance. Re-use, up- and recycling reduce the ecological footprint not only of glass, but of every material. From paper to aluminum to plastic, raw materials and resources are better used the longer they can be efficiently recycled and used.

According to statistics from Recycling Austria (ARA) around 34 percent of plastics are recycled in Austria. According to the European strategy for plastics, all plastic packaging placed on the market should be reusable or recyclable by 2030. This is only realistic if products and packaging are designed accordingly and later recycling plays a decisive role in the design process. For example, by using as few different materials as possible, reuse can be made easier, since waste separation is not so laborious.

Consumers must also do their part. Because as long as glass bottles or aluminum cans are carelessly thrown into the residual waste and the camping utensils remain on the river bank, design and production cannot stop environmental pollution. Luger: “When buying, we can decide for or against environmentally friendly packaging and products. And each individual is responsible for the proper disposal of their waste. For this, awareness must be sharpened in the upbringing. "

Last but not least, reduction is the order of the day for ideal packaging. In 2018, according to Statista, every German citizen used an average of around 227,5 kilograms of packaging material. Consumption has been rising steadily since 1995. Here, too, product development is required on the one hand to design as resource-efficient as possible, and on the other hand, consumers are required to rethink their lifestyle and reduce their consumption. It starts with using tubes down to the last bit of hair gel or toothpaste, reusing jars for jam or as candle holders and does not end with the umpteenth online order.

Photo / Video: Shutterstock.

Written by Karin Bornett

Freelance journalist and blogger in the Community option. Technology-loving Labrador smoking with a passion for village idyll and a soft spot for urban culture.
www.karinbornett.at

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