Affordable and eco-friendly
According to an on-line survey of packaging professionals conducted by DuPont’s Packaging & Industrial Polymers division in March 2011, sustainability and cost are the major concerns in the global packaging industry to date.
Actually, more than 500 packaging professionals were surveyed* and almost 40 percent sited sustainability as the toughest challenge, while 33 percent named cost as a major factor.
“Sustainable, cost-effective solutions that reduce packaging’s environmental footprint are a top goal across geographies,” said William J. Harvey, president at DuPont Packaging & Industrial Polymers.
Eco-design leads the way
Among the multiple options available to improve the environmental impact of their products, 65 percent of the respondents say their efforts are focused on design for recyclability or on use of recycled content, much more than those opting for renewable or bio-based materials (41 percent) or focusing on compostable materials (25 percent).
“These survey results confirm that there are many pathways to improving packaging sustainability,” said Harvey. “It starts with close collaboration throughout the value chain to spark innovation.”
To address these concerns, DuPont Packaging & Industrial Polymers proposes a number of ways to enhance sustainability. Regarding the Surlyn ionomer, which looks like glass and is particularly used in the packaging of cosmetic products, Dupont claims it “helps reduce the total amount of material in packaging structures”. DuPont also says its Biomax Strong modifier helps bio-based PLA (polylactic acid) products gain more widespread use by enhancing the performance attributes of this material.
