There’s so much talk about sustainability when it comes to packaging. How can we minimize the amount of packaging we use? How can we make more of it recyclable? How can we source more materials from natural, renewable resources? How can we get away from petroleum-based packaging?
It’s fascinating to me that while all of these concepts have merit, we don’t ask the most fundamental question: how can we make packaging part of the product? I’ve advocated for this when working on toy packaging for years but invariably received the response: “Unfortunately, Walmart doesn’t give you scorecard points for doing this.” Now, this isn’t a slam against Walmart. The retail giant has worked with thousands of suppliers since 2006 to cut down on packaging everywhere possible. By taking a lead position on this, sustainable consumer product packaging has been pushed ahead by light years.
Regardless of retailer focus, manufacturers can save themselves a lot of money on package materials and their associated manufacturing costs including energy by thinking about the simple proposition of making packaging part of the product. Not to mention the good will and positive buzz they’ll get from consumers for their efforts.
