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How to Save Money by Going Green on Packaging
With the growing need for environmental safety, many businesses worldwide are looking for ways to incorporate sustainability in production, manufacture, and distribution. The impact of these packaging materials on the environment is drastic. By shifting to green and eco-friendly packaging, companies are now able to: Reduce carbon footprint Minimize overhead costs Produce a lasting and…
How Do Branding And Packaging Value Your Business?
It’s crucial to decide how your company will stand out in a world where brands rule. Two of the most crucial marketing factors are packaging and branding, and both should be carefully planned. Packaging and branding work together to create a clear brand personality, draw in new clients, and maintain existing ones. For your business,…
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Latest News & Articles
How to Save Money by Going Green on Packaging
With the growing need for environmental safety, many businesses worldwide are looking for ways to incorporate sustainability in production, manufacture, and distribution. The impact of these packaging materials on the environment is drastic. By shifting to green and eco-friendly packaging, companies are now able to:
- Reduce carbon footprint
- Minimize overhead costs
- Produce a lasting and positive impression on customers\
- Increase business sustainability and transparency.
Why is green packaging essential?
Green packaging mainly refers to minimizing the impact of residual harmful materials from packaging on the internet. By using lightweight packaging materials, prioritizing durability, and improving the return process, companies are now able to contribute to saving the environment without hampering consumer happiness.
Lightweight packaging
One of the primary perks of lightweight packaging is to reduce shipping costs. As a result, materials like plastic films, jute, and molded pulp have become favorites in the industry. In addition to this, consumers also appreciate and follow the steps taken by big industries to save the world.
Prioritizing durability
Durability plays an important role in protecting the contents inside the packaging. Therefore, it is one of the most significant operations of the chosen packaging. Hence, the green materials chosen should be both durable and environmentally friendly.
How to save money with green packaging
Here are some ways companies can employ to go green and also save money simultaneously.
Reduce packaging
One of the easiest ways to save money is to reduce packaging. Since less is more, using high-quality and lesser materials is best to save costs. Companies can also reduce packaging size or use thinner yet more durable films.
Using eco-friendly materials
Eco-friendly materials are the best to protect the environment and satisfy customers with beautiful and elegant packaging. Such materials refer to biodegradable plastics, reusable containers, recycled paper, and others, which can help the company’s image and our planet in the long run. However, it is important to consider that these materials are expensive but have a longer lifespan and can be recycled or reused accordingly.
Minimalistic packaging design
By reducing the amount of design on the packaging or branding, companies can save costs on printing and investment in different types of materials. Instead, the same money can be used to invest in a good graphic designer who can produce an idea for minimalistic design with lower investments.
Lighter packaging
Lighter materials are known to reduce shipping costs. In addition, it also reduces the amount of fuel needed for shipping, contributing drastically to the environment.
Reusing packing
One of the best ways to save costs using green packaging is to reuse them whenever possible. Repurposing reduces waste and prevents buying new materials, saving a ton of class and materials.
How Do Branding And Packaging Value Your Business?
It’s crucial to decide how your company will stand out in a world where brands rule. Two of the most crucial marketing factors are packaging and branding, and both should be carefully planned. Packaging and branding work together to create a clear brand personality, draw in new clients, and maintain existing ones. For your business, branding, and packaging are crucial since they serve a variety of functions, some of which you’ve probably never thought about before.
Packaging and branding as a connecting channel
Branding must be captivating and elicit a feeling, and a variety of feelings. It is essential that it prompts the consumer to consider the brand’s values outside of its product. Retailers may separate from the competition by using unique packaging. It might include a crisp, simple box or an item with a vibrant pattern inside, depending on who you’re trying to reach. Additionally, it’s a chance to delight or amuse a consumer. Customers can learn more about your business and your beliefs by looking at the packaging.
Also, companies consider branding and packaging as a channel for communication as well. Some retail businesses use labels and stickers to inform clients about the goods or to direct them to social media sites.
Visual appeal
To impress your audience and stand out, it is quite advantageous to have packaging that is specific to your business. Being visual beings, humans create first impressions based on appearance. A visually stunning identity is the first step in building a brand’s appeal to consumers.
A brand’s identity should not be frequently altered because it is permanent. A constant brand image can help you build credibility and will at least pique consumer curiosity. The strongest companies in the world maintain consistency in their use of colors, logos, and other brand elements.
Packaging supports the brand promotion
Packaging can support your brand promotion efforts in a variety of ways. For instance, let’s say your business is an eCommerce one rather than a retail one. Given that buyers aren’t viewing the packaging prior to making a purchase, you might conclude that it doesn’t important. However, everyone who sees your packaging along the road, such as friends, neighbors, or even the mailman, will still have the opportunity to learn about your business.
Brand recognition is developed through packaging
When done properly, packaging can also aid in building brand recognition, which is something that every business should strive for. This is due to the fact that most customers are cautious to purchase products from companies they have never heard of or are unfamiliar with.
However, if you can increase brand image through packaging and brand awareness through marketing, customers will be able to identify your brand as soon as they see the items on the shelf. Customers are more likely to buy your goods if they are familiar with them since they are aware of the brand and its reputation.
Sustainable Packaging – A Complete Guide
Sustainable packaging is a term that is booming in the environmental sector, with 2022 being one of the best years for the implementation of the same. It refers to the packaging of goods and materials to reduce their impact on the environment. This method includes reducing the harmful release of greenhouse gases, reducing the use of non-renewable resources, and promoting the recycling and reuse of different materials.
Benefits of sustainable packaging
Apart from the primary benefit of protecting the environment and decreasing its impact on the environment, it is also helpful in the following ways to different businesses that use them.
- Expand the brand’s loyalty and increase customer base – Businesses that tend to care about the environment also care about their customers. Hence, they are known to build extreme loyalty and also increase their business in the long run.
- Consolidated storage: Two primary goals of this method is to reduce the packaging items and minimize waste even while using non-renewable ways to pack items. When these factors are implemented correctly, they give great storage and prevent you from using additional space.
- Reduced shipping costs: Shipping smaller packets is a much better way t reduce the use of large chunks of packaging materials and is also a great way to practice sustainability.
Strategies for sustainable packaging
Here are some of the best practices for sustainable packaging, which is not only a business, but you can also follow to save and protect the environment.
Share disposal and recycling.
As a business, it is best to educate people on the best ways to recycle their used packaging materials or reuse them in different ways to reduce the consumption of materials.
Shipping in smaller packages
Shipping in smaller packages helps in reducing the ecological footprint and reduces the number of materials used. Not only will this practice help you become more sustainable, but it will also reduce shipping costs drastically.
Plant-based packaging
Plant-based packaging is one of the best ways to make good use of biological resources. For instance, food packaging should be made from products that provide good packaging but do not affect the product’s flavor packaging.
Edible packaging
This method is the cousin of plant-based packaging. This means they are safe to eat, and it is a great option for sellers to market their beverages and food in the right way.
What Are The Different Types Of Packaging Materials?
Packaging is an important part of the shipping and receiving process. Without it, your product would be at risk of damage, which could lead to a loss of revenue. You might think that there’s only one type of packaging material out there, but in reality, any different types have their own pros and cons.
Below we’ll cover basic information about each type so you can decide what works best for your products!
Plastics
Plastics are a material that includes polymers, which are long chain molecules made up of repeating units. They’re used in packaging and containers, as well as consumer goods such as toys, electronics and clothing. Plastics are durable and lightweight, making them ideal for shipping large quantities of goods across the globe.
Plastic can be recycled almost indefinitely—it just needs to be diligently sorted first. The three main types of plastic packaging include:
Glass
Glass is a rigid, brittle and heavy material. However, it can be both lightweight and strong at the same time. It’s a good insulator that also allows light to pass through it. This makes glass suitable for both food and beverage packaging as well as other products like cosmetics or pharmaceuticals where light transmission is important.
Tinplate or Steel
Tinplate or steel is a combination of steel and tin. It is used to make cans for food and beverages.
Tinplate is an alloy with low carbon content, which gives it high ductility, toughness and good formability. Tinplate can be easily formed into complex shapes that are difficult to achieve with other materials such as aluminum or plastics. Tinplated steel is usually bright mill-finish on both sides (B/C) or galvanized on one side (G/Z).
Paper and board
Paper and board are made from wood pulp. This material is used to make boxes, cups, bags and many other types of packaging.
Paper and board can be made from recycled or virgin pulp. Recycled paper is less expensive than virgin pulp because it has already been processed once.
Paper and board have a variety of uses when it comes to packaging. They are often used for food packaging as well as for non-food items such as magazines or newspapers.
Flexible packaging materials
Flexible packaging materials are made from a variety of different materials, including paperboard, plastic and metal foils. These can be used to package a wide range of products, and they are often used as the outer layer on multi-layered packaging.
Flexible packaging is useful for items that need to be sealed tightly or otherwise contained carefully. For example, if you’re shipping fragile items in boxes or bags that could get crushed easily during transit, flexible packaging might provide extra protection.
There are many types of packaging materials and they can be used to store or transport a wide range of products. The most common types include plastics, glassware, tinplate or steel cans and paperboard. In addition, flexible packaging is also a popular choice because it offers greater protection but is still lightweight enough for easy handling in stores or delivery trucks.
Design Approaches Based on Psychology for Eye-Catching Packaging
How does a product of a brand distinguish itself? What causes a buyer to choose your product over those of your direct competitors when they are all displayed side by side on a shelf? Brand loyalty has a part in it. Ingredients, composition, packaging techniques, manufacturing processes, and ethical sources make up some of them. In reality, psychology accounts for the majority of it. The packaging of your product will help you draw in customers who have never heard of, seen, or used any of the competing products. Some of the basic qualities of eye-catching packaging are:
- Presentation
- Texture
- Complexity
- Uniqueness
- Attraction
- Longevity
Usage of suitable colors
Color is one of the main aspects of product packaging that is most easily seen. The key element in packaging that draws customers in is color. It is frequently among the primary things people see because it is more easily seen than other parts like writing, drawings, or graphics from a distance. Color choices involve many factors. You’ve definitely aware of color psychology, which discusses how certain hues can evoke different emotions depending on the culture. For example, the predominant colors of many packaging items are red and blue, which stand for energy, health, and positivity.
Quality modifications
Customers must be presented with visually appealing packaging that also stands out from the competition. When competitors use conventional square boxes, unique structures are extremely effective at grabbing attention. Changing the whole package’s size can have the same outcome. In addition to structural adjustments, pressure effects and texture modifications bring something special that buyers will desire to connect with. This objective is achieved with the aid of soft-touch coatings, customized substrates, embossing, or debossing.
Importance to form and design
The use of psychology in product and packaging design is not just used by well-known brands. Packaging is necessary for your items, and variations in form, design, and appearance have a significant effect on how your consumers view the products. Product packaging exhibits a comparable level of tiered design; however, it is less obvious. Products that are slim and slender often make people think of health. Products that are squat and narrow are seen as robust and confident. Even extremely complicated shapes possess their own emotional connotations and can be used as additional branding elements.
Understanding customer needs
A premium packaging design catches the eye from a distance and directs it to the shelf. Packaging needs to offer something distinctive to fully appeal to consumers, much like aesthetic appeal does, albeit distinctiveness can take many forms. Although your product’s packaging must pull customers in from the shelf, once they are there, it must keep their interest. Additionally, it’s critical that your plan be very useful and efficient. An efficient design is one that boosts sales at the store and integrates nicely with production and distribution systems.
How important is Packaging in marketing a Product?
We all have the wrong idea that packaging is just for protecting our products. After all, what matters is the quality of your product. But if you are moving forward with your business with this mentality, then you are laying the foundation for your failure.
Packaging plays a vital role in the marketing of the product and brand. Numerous studies show that many consumers buy a product based on its packaging. It is found that more than 52% of customers will come back to you only if they are receiving products in premium packaging. With a vast audience measuring the worth of your product and the quality of your brand with the packaging, you should not underestimate the power of product packaging.
If you are still not convinced about the relevance of good packaging, you may read the articles to learn about it. Listed below are the reasons why packaging is important in marketing a product.
Strengthening the Shelf impact
There are plenty of products available in the market that is similar to your product. So, when customer enters this vast product jungle, they might feel overwhelmed. So, from this huge and confusing jungle, how are they going to make their choice? This is where product packaging becomes important. Studies show that more than one-third of customers buy products based on your product packaging.
Product packaging is the first thing that communicates with the audience and is the key to forming opinions. And as we all know the first impression is the last. Therefore, make sure that your packaging stands out from others. Make sure that you do not go for generic packaging as it will look dull.
Convey a message
Product packaging can be used to convey a message to consumers. The front of your packaging, called ‘facing’ is where you can showcase your brand values and grab the attention of the audience. By using this portable billboard wisely, you will be able to stand apart from your competitors.
Better customer experience
When you are providing tailored or customized packaging, it has the power to evoke a positive emotion in the customers. Thus, premium packaging will drive more customers to your product as they will feel special and spoiled when they receive it.
Packaging plays a vital role in marketing today. So, customize your packaging and make them attractive to stand out to your customers and build your brand value.
4 Great Packaging Innovation Examples
As the world is moving into a modern era, so is the waste around us! The increased toxic and hazardous waste daily has caused a drastic shift in environmental harm. Hence, in recent times, the government and non-government organizations are taking extreme measures to reduce this pollution and keep our environment safe and secure for future generations.
Packaging innovation is one such method that uses strategies to enhance resource efficiency and reduce waste by using alternative materials to save the environment. Over the years, many techniques have been introduced to meet customer-requirement without compromising environmental safety. This involves company and industrial owner’s turning innovative and stabilizing the supply and demand chain.
4 Great Packaging Innovation Examples
The companies mentioned below have employed bioplastics as plastic alternatives, unique circulation production systems, and many more that anyone can engage in their business.
Configuration model
- Companies like Souvla are implementing the low-manpower model to increase the demand for fewer employees. The customers directly order at the counter, instead of people waiting on them.
- According to statistics, people in the US spent almost 600 billion dollars on groceries alone in 2018. Brands like Brandless have come up with solutions to reduce costs and enhance eco-friendly grocery options by providing a solution to order them online.
- Brew DR, a Portland-based company, uses the zero waste models to use-use and recycles their products to manufacture different products.
Network Model
A competing and popular brand Re-Pizza in China joined forces with other organizations to sell their unused and recyclable products. For instance, they introduced the use of leftover pizzas to make new pizzas with over 200 different flavors available for sale to all kinds of customers in china.
Processing model
- The processing model is mainly beneficial for food industries like Father Farms, which utilizes new technologies to leverage carbon dioxide for good use, like pasteurizing food. It also uses methods to eliminate the quantity of freezing and artificial preservatives. This reduces the energy used by restaurants by 70%, which may also have significant implications on the supply chain.
- Popular fast food chains like Pizza Hut are implementing technology-based cooking and delivery models to make and deliver pizza using robots. The main objective of such a model is to reduce preparation costs and enhance productivity. They are also planning on introducing the human-driving vehicle that cooks pizza while on the way to the customer.
Consumer engagement model
- Companies like Club SODA NYC are integrating the effects of alcohol in soda without the alcoholic content. This will reduce the ingredients required to produce alcohol and help promote better health for the consumers.
- Another important model for millenials is integrating trendy food and social media. If the food and the restaurant take measures to serve the environment, they are featured by famous health bloggers and influences, followed by many worldwide.
Best 5 Packaging Innovations for 2022
Many initiatives have been taken to make packaging eco-friendlier, sustainable, and smarter. But ever since Covid-19, when people were confined to their homes, consumers began to rely on online shopping. Even after covid, people are preferring online shopping which has resulted in the production of a massive amount of packaging waste. So, to counter this threat posed by packaging, start-up, and business are coming up with innovations to streamline the packaging process and reduce the waste produced. Businesses have also realized that packaging is an essential part of customer experience, hence using smart packaging is essential to boost brand value and maintain customer loyalty.
You can look into this guide to learn about the various innovation that is being introduced in packaging.
Internet of packaging
One of the packaging trends that is disrupting the traditional packaging process is the internet of packaging. Through this process, the consumers can contact the companies using smart labels, QR codes, NFC chips, and RFID. The companies can further enhance this system by using augmented reality through which the companies can engage with the customers; give them coupon codes or video instructions. IoT devices will enable consumers to get real-time protection information. This technology is much safer and authorization compared to the traditional ones.
Biodegradable packaging
Since we are living in a world of highly conscious consumers, sustainable packaging is going to spread its wings in 2022. Having sustainable and eco-friendly packaging will protect the environment and will also help in boosting the brand image.
Due to their massive scope, many companies are using biodegradable materials for packing. Companies can use sustainable packaging options like paper voidfill and reinforced self-adhesive kraft tape. For instance, the food industry is adopting various biodegradable options like Glass containers, bamboo packaging, and products made of rice husks.
Minimalism
By 2022, businesses are going to break away from using excessive materials in packaging. Instead of using more material for packaging, using minimum items for packing will reduce waste.
Recyclable Packaging
Another trend that is going to dominate the packaging industry is recycling. Today, many companies are encouraging their consumers to recycle their products. As we know, recycling is one of the most traditional ways to protect the environment and reduce waste. Due to the rise of plastic waste at an uncontrollable rate, business is focusing on recyclable packing materials.
Personalization
Customizing and personalizing the packaging is going to be another trend in packaging. Personalizing the products will make your packaging attractive and is also an impressive way to attract the audience. Various studies show that personalized and customized packaging is one of the best ways to strengthen your relationship with your customer and is a good way to improve customer loyalty.
Packaging plays a vital role in improving customer experience. So, you can adopt these smart and efficient packaging options to strengthen your business and improve your brand value.
10 Brands With Sustainable Packaging
In today’s connected world, consumers are more informed than ever before. This means consumers can now walk into commerce transactions armed with research about any particular brand or product. It also means that consumers have a more in-depth understanding and exposure to the local and global impacts of socially irresponsible practices, whether it be water shortages, food poverty and poor air quality. As a result, many consumers have adopted more sustainable behaviors, and expect the same from the brands they purchase.
Since consumers are doing their homework, more and more consumer packaged goods (CPG) and quick service restaurant leaders are committing to improving organizational practices that impact the natural environment.
Here are highlights from top brands pledging to more sustainable packaging strategies. We will continue to update this list as a resource for brands and consumers alike, enabling both to better understand large corporations’ strategies as they evolve.
McDonald’s brands With Sustainable Packaging McDonalds
Highlights:
100% of McDonald’s guest packaging will come from renewable, recycled or certified sources by 2025.
Recycle guest packaging in 100% of McDonald’s restaurants by 2025. Recycling infrastructure, regulations and consumer behaviors vary from city to city and country to country, but McDonald’s plan to be part of the solution and help influence powerful change.
What this means:
McDonald’s is acutely aware of the influence they have as one of the world’s largest restaurant companies. As a brand, the scope of the communities and cultures they touch is vast. Understanding the wide breadth of their consumer base, McDonald’s is dedicated to matching the recycling behaviors of the individual regions they serve.
Mondelēz International, Inc. brands With Sustainable Packaging Mondelez
Highlights:
Eliminate 65,000 metric tons of packaging
What this means:
By eliminating superfluous packaging materials, not only is Mondelēz clearly evaluating their how their manufacturing is impacting the natural environment, but it also shows a commitment to keeping their efforts consumer-facing. Less packaging material means less for the consumer to dispose of themselves.
Coca-Cola brands With Sustainable Packaging Coca Cola
Highlights:
Work with partners to recover and recycle bottles and cans equivalent to 75% of those that Coca-Cola introduces into developed markets.
What this means:
By introducing recovered and recycled products into the marketplace, Coca-Cola is reinforcing the recycling behaviors of their consumers. They are inherently motivating consumers to engage in the recycling process as they have made simply the act of buying the Coke products they are already purchasing a part of the process.
Pepsi brands With Sustainable Packaging Pepsi
Highlights:
Strive to design 100% of packaging that is recyclable, compostable or biodegradable, increase recycled materials in our plastic packaging, reduce packaging’s carbon impact and in partnership with the PepsiCo Foundation, work to increase recycling rates by 2025.
What this means:
There’s a lot to consider when designing a product package with recycling in mind. Converting to recyclable packaging is a noble endeavor, and an important one; however, if consumers aren’t recycling, then that recyclable packaging is still ending up in a landfill. PepsiCo is doubling down and not only analyzing its materials but committing to working to influence consumer perceptions of recycling to improve recycling rates.
Procter & Gamble brands With Sustainable Packaging Proctor and Gamble
Highlights:
Reducing packaging by 20% per consumer use
Doubling use of recycled resin in plastic packaging
Ensuring 90% of packaging is recyclable or there are programs in place to develop the ability to recycle it
What this means:
P&G is keenly aware of packaging’s key performance criteria: protecting its products. Putting innovative muscle behind packaging material reduction and moving from boxed products to bagged products in increase recyclability of plastic is how they are examining where they can make a positive impact internally. Externally, they are focusing on the role the consumer plays in the recycling process. By including messaging on packaging to educate consumers on recycling the package and investing an innovation project from New Plastics Economy Innovation which aids in the sorting of plastics at recycling facilities, P&G shows a commitment to improving the recycling process as a whole and making sustainable practices more adoptable by more consumers.
Nestlé brands With Sustainable Packaging Nestle
Highlights:
100% of packaging is recyclable or reusable by 2025
By 2020, reduce the amount of packaging we use by 140,000 tons by 2020
What this means:
Similarly, Nestlé commits to supporting the improvement of collection, sorting and recycling programs across the countries in which they operate, as well as educating consumers on proper recycling practices. The more product labeling and packaging conveys these messages the more it is likely to catalyze correct recycling behavior. This two tier-approach to their corporate sustainability pledge seeks to both continuously improve the environmental performance of their packaging while aiding in the development of recycling management to prevent even sustainably-sourced packaging from ending up as litter.
Unilever brands With Sustainable Packaging unilever
Highlights:
Ensure all plastic packaging is designed to be reusable, recyclable or compostable by 2025
Halve the waste associated with the disposal of Unilever products by 2020
Reduce the weight of the packaging it uses this decade by one third by 2020
What this means:
Unilever specifically calls for a move away from the linear “take-make-consume-dispose” mindset and towards the circular economy approach, increasing efficiencies by reexamining the end of packaging’s lifecycle. Looking to play an active role in boosting recycling program performance, Unilever is taking a focused-approach through industry partnerships to stimulate recycling and recovery infrastructure by examining materials that are particularly complex to recycle.
Danone brands With Sustainable Packaging Danone
Highlights:
25% recycled polyethylene terephthalate in plastic water bottles by 2020
Eliminate the use of paper-based packaging derived from unsustainable sources such as deforested areas by 2020
What this means:
Danone is committed to minimizing the use of resources and to continuing to innovate their packaging to make 100% of it fully recyclable. By focusing on sustainable resources at the front end of the process, they are investing in the long-term success of their organization as they are increasing the supply of these commodities in the future.
General Mills brands With Sustainable Packaging General Mills
Highlights:
Sustainably source 100% of our fiber packaging by 2020
Reduce the greenhouse gas emissions occurring within their packaging supply chain, which represents 8% of total value chain emissions
What this means:
General Mills recognizes the wide scope of environmental impact of packaging, and therefore have identified a number of materiality issues that are relevant to the packaging value chain. By introducing sustainable practices in the early phases of packaging design can reduce packaging’s impact, General Mills decreases the amount of material used in packaging mock-ups while innovating and trystorming lower impact materials for packaging solutions. Like any of the other CPG companies listed here, General Mills is also committed to the consumer-side of sustainable food packaging practices that maintain food safety.
Diageo brands With Sustainable Packaging Diageo
Highlights:
Reduce total packaging weight by 15% by 2020
Increase recycled content to 45% by 2020
Make 100% of our packaging recyclable or reusable by 2020
Sustainably source all our paper and board packaging to ensure zero net deforestation by 2020
What this means:
Diageo is looking to their suppliers, retail customers and consumers to all be a part of the sustainable packaging process. Diageo will work with packaging suppliers to understand the relevant sustainability characteristics of materials. They have initiated programming that encourages their retail customers to contribute to the collection stage of the recycling process. They are also relying on their consumers to recycle more, and recycle better, and so they are committed to improving recycling infrastructures in the communities they serve around the world. This requires transparency across the packaging value chain to communicate and overcome challenges towards these initiatives.
Sustainability strategies such as these are necessary to be competitive in today’s more environmentally conscious market. CPG companies and fast food brand leaders are lining up to outline their commitments to accelerate the progress towards the circular economy of packaging recycling. These pledges send a signal to other brands, suppliers, and vendors that there is a real demand for a more sustainable approach to packaging production that reduces environmental cost while continuing to protect and engage consumers.
USDA Program Promotes Sustainable Packaging Including Plant-based Bottles
The USDA is proposing a new agency rule that will support sustainable packaging made of plant-based plastic, rubber and fiber. Under the new rule, a current program designed to promote ethanol and biodiesel fuels will be expanded to companies using plant-based materials in manufacturing products such as bottles and packaging.
The new rule will add plant-based products manufacturers to a loan guarantee program that would allow companies building new plants to borrow money at lower interest rates. Thus far, the program has provided more than $844 million for 10 biofuel projects since 2008. According to Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack, loans of up to $250 million will be offered to projects involving development of plant-based materials for manufacturing.
According to a USDA-commissioned report mandated in the 2014 farm bill, the plant-based materials industry created four million jobs and contributed $369 billion to the economy in 2013.
Examples of recently created plant-based goods include the Coca Cola Company’s sugarcane-based bottle and soybean oil-derived Ford Mustang seat cushions. According to Coca Cola, its PlantBottle packages have saved more than 30 million gallons of gas and eliminated 270,000 metric tons of carbon dioxide emissions, the equivalent to the amount emitted from burning more than 630,000 barrels of oil.