Right now, everyone is looking for ways to make their packaging eco-friendlier. The recent stories about climate change have had a huge impact, both on business leaders and consumers. It has become abundantly clear that we all need to be looking for more effective ways to keep our carbon footprints small. We also need to encourage our customers to be responsible with recycling.
Changing our packaging materials is one of the simplest and most effective ways for businesses to address their environmental responsibilities, and one of the biggest questions is: which materials are the best? Here are a few tips to help you choose.
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Recycled Cardboard And Paper
Cardboard or paper can be a perfectly fine choice depending on the products that your business makes and/or ships. Now, clearly, they are not going to be the best option for everything, but if your products are light enough or hardy enough for it, then this is one of the simplest and most sustainable. Provided, of course, that you use recycled materials.
Sustainable Polythene
It should not be surprising that we are seeing some fantastic leaps forward in the creation of carbon neutral packaging materials. One of the most impressive options on the market right now is Biopolyethylene. This ecological polythene packaging company offers businesses the kind of toughness that you demand while still being lightweight enough to be efficient, and it has been carefully crafted to create the minimal amount of wastage and damage to the environment. Polythene UK offers a range of different packaging options, that range from the 100% recyclable Polyair to the starch-based Polycomp, which actually breaks down naturally without the need to recycle.
Corn-Starch Packaging
Speaking of starch-based packaging, the advances in corn-starch packaging are absolutely worth a point of their own. The material is surprisingly cheap for anyone considering using it for their business, it is sustainable and contains absolutely no toxins which would be harmful to the environment. You may have seen corn-starch packaging at work if you have bought a package containing biodegradable packaging peanuts. We all know how important it is to cut polystyrene out of our packaging, given that it can take hundreds of years to break down. The corn-starch alternatives break down quickly and harmlessly.
Mushroom Packaging
It’s not all about corn-starch when it comes to all natural packaging ingredients. Remarkably, mushrooms are being used for this purpose. This is made from mushrooms that have been ground down and combined with roots of mushrooms (mycelium if you want to get technical). The packaging can be moulded into specific shapes after it has been dried and it is remarkably flexible. It is also compostable, and it comes with low CO2 emissions, and it takes very little energy to make.
Seaweed Packaging
On a similar note, we are seeing businesses start to use seaweed for their packaging needs. The gelatinous material can be moulded and hardened, and it is completely biodegradable. What’s more, you could actually eat the packaging in some cases if you want to (but make sure to check first!).
