Packaging Technology

[shah_nosrat]

Hi,

I was thinking about this for quite a while now. Practically everything we buy is packaged in some form or another, like for example: food, electronics, shoes, accessories, games......etc.

 

Is there a way to be minimalist about how we go about packaging our 'stuff' and try to reduce waste. Or employ biodegradable materials in our packaging?

[Phi for All]

Tons of ways, but it won't work. Plain packaging or no packaging will sell x amount of product. Branded packaging (even when factoring in the extra costs) sells 4x amount of product (some a little lower, some much higher). Packaging makes lots more money than it costs.

 

Case in point is this popcorn at Costco. Flavored popcorn in fancy wrapped cones with brilliant printing on them. When you total up the weight on the popcorn itself, you're paying around $10 per pound, for flavored popcorn in printed cellophane.

 

I buy some stuff from bulk bins, but unfortunately that business has been taken over in the US by a middle man distribution company. The merchandise they stock is not the high quality you'd get if some of the better manufacturers simply sold their products in bulk without packaging.

 

Some packaging is necessary just to protect the product. Who would want their shoes shipped from wherever if they were loose and scuffing up against all the other shoes? Boxes help prevent that, and make it easier to stack and ship.

 

I think recycling is the best solution. Make sure the stuff you buy is in recyclable packaging.

[Klaynos]

There is some movement in this direction in the UK.

 

An example that jumps to mind is instant coffee...

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G7qmCU-ckgc

[shah_nosrat]

Tons of ways, but it won't work. Plain packaging or no packaging will sell x amount of product. Branded packaging (even when factoring in the extra costs) sells 4x amount of product (some a little lower, some much higher). Packaging makes lots more money than it costs.

 

I'm not discouraging branding your products.

 

Some packaging is necessary just to protect the product. Who would want their shoes shipped from wherever if they were loose and scuffing up against all the other shoes? Boxes help prevent that, and make it easier to stack and ship.

 

Of course, no one would want their new shoes or any product they buy to be destroyed by shipping, I was suggesting of finding new ways to package the products we buy by making the packaging more compact and less excessive.

 

I think recycling is the best solution. Make sure the stuff you buy is in recyclable packaging.

 

Yes, I agree recycling is one of the solutions (I was reading up on Japan's recycling policies, and I think it should be a model to adopt by the rest of the world), but there are also biodegradable packaging solutions as well.

 

I appreciate your feedback and opinion

 

There is some movement in this direction in the UK.

 

An example that jumps to mind is instant coffee...

 

 

Interesting video, nice to see some initiative being taken.

 

Thank you for your feedback!

[Phi for All]

I'm not discouraging branding your products.

I didn't think you were. My point is that the packaging is often what makes the products appealing enough to jump off the shelf and into the shopping carts. And sometimes, the more excessive the packaging is, the more value it's perceived to have.

 

Of course, no one would want their new shoes or any product they buy to be destroyed by shipping, I was suggesting of finding new ways to package the products we buy by making the packaging more compact and less excessive.

Some packaging is a theft-deterrent as well, making the product too bulky to be slipped into the pocket of a shoplifter. We're making headway there with radio-frequency ID chips, but there's a lot of controversy about privacy and the tracking abilities of those chips. They may protect against shoplifting, but so far nothing is stopping those chips from sending information to anyone with the proper reader, even after you've left the store.

 

I totally agree that much of the packaging these days seems excessive. Right now the manufacturers are more concerned with the things I've mentioned rather than how much is going into the landfills. If we want to change all that, I think the best way to accomplish the goal is the same way recycling got a foothold. If consumers start purchasing more products that offer biodegradable or less bulky packaging, the markets will start leaning that way. Then we have to make sure the corporate lobbyists don't arrange to have the legal definition of "biodegradable" changed to the point where it's meaningless.

[shah_nosrat]

I totally agree that much of the packaging these days seems excessive. Right now the manufacturers are more concerned with the things I've mentioned rather than how much is going into the landfills. If we want to change all that, I think the best way to accomplish the goal is the same way recycling got a foothold. If consumers start purchasing more products that offer biodegradable or less bulky packaging, the markets will start leaning that way. Then we have to make sure the corporate lobbyists don't arrange to have the legal definition of "biodegradable" changed to the point where it's meaningless.

 

I appreciate your feedback, and I agree it starts with the consumers. I think the best way to do this is by proper education, and make the general public aware of the damage waste is doing to our planet. We really need to be aware of this fact, because it is our environment that supports us, not the other way around.