Eco-friendly and Sustainable Packaging: A Paradigm Shift in the Consumer Goods Industry
Fast-moving consumer goods make up the fourth largest sector of the Indian economy. The category comprises three primary sectors: food and beverage ~19%, healthcare being 31%, and the remaining 50% being household and personal care. However, pervasive across all of the above is the requirement for packaging. Sustainability is one of the fastest-rising factors of importance across all fields of the production and consumption cycle. Modern innovations are driving a definite shift from single-use plastics to greener alternatives for every polymer supplier in the country today. This demand, while once largely met through single-use plastic, is now shifting to biodegradable polymers, and recycled/organic plant-based by-products.
Despite the exponentially rising per-person consumption of goods and by extension packaging in the country today, India has categorically put a blanket ban on the use of plastics lower than 120 microns for single use. While it may have impacted polymer prices temporarily, the industry is moving on to other applications of the material, and demand is again stabilizing. Many polymer suppliers have upgraded their plants and machinery, and the Central Pollution Control Board (in charge of monitoring the single-use plastic ban) is also issuing licenses for the same.
Finding Alternatives
The short period of time spent under lockdown had dramatic impacts on society’s consumption habits. While every polymer supplier faced logistical setbacks due to international lockdowns, the demand skyrocketed simultaneously. The Indian Institute of Packaging estimates an over 200% rise in packaging consumption, and there is no foreseeable relaxation in this demand. The government’s push, at this crucial time, has created a novel opportunity for small and medium enterprises in the packaging ecosystem to upgrade their facilities for better business and a greener tomorrow.
This has created a definite distaste, if not aversion in the consumer goods industry today towards the use of plastic polymers in packaging. Only slated to grow stronger as the effects of climate heating start manifesting themselves, all industries across the board are now taking tangible steps to maintain ecological responsibility.
Not just limited to organic fabrics, recycled cardboard, paper, wood, etc. any biomass material from renewable sources can be incorporated into bio-polymers. The polymer price of such materials varies based on their constituents and intended use. This ranges from drug-delivery systems like capsule coatings to replacing bubble wrap with corrugated cardboard as dampeners during logistical operations and beyond.
Some alternatives currently in practice across the consumer goods industry are:
Repeat Use Packaging
Setting up and maintaining a reverse-logistics pathway is a viable option for repetitive consumables. As glass bottles have traditionally been sterilized and re-used extensively, such solutions facilitate a potentially limitless cycle, which significantly reduces costs and wastage in the long run. Some common examples include soft drinks, reusable shopping bags, gas cylinders, etc.
Bio-Plastics
While there are not a lot of low-cost alternatives to plastic raw materials, the government is facilitating extensive research in the field. Currently, the cheapest commercially available biopolymer is Polybutylene adipate terephthalate (PBAT). Conventional plastic polymer price oscillates around 90/kg on the lower end, while PBAT is available for ₹ 280–300/kg. Further innovation in the field is expected to yield cheaper polymers, as more technologically driven polymer suppliers enter the market.
Polylactic Acid
PLA is a transparent, solid material with properties similar to PETE plastics. However, PLA has a significantly lower tolerance to high temperatures. Such materials are seeing adoption in medicine, food packaging, and single-use disposables.
Polyhydroxyalkanoate
Much more resilient to high temperatures, PHA can be made from fermented corn sugar and can decompose up to 90% in 90 days under the right conditions both in soil, and when submerged in water.
Paper-based Packaging
A large share of the drop in polymer price has migrated directly to paper-based solutions. Food packaging and disposable cutlery like plates, straws, and contact wrappers are now almost exclusively made from paper.
Edible Packaging
Consumable packaging is often derived from seaweed, algae, natural proteins, and composites. A polymer supplier may also develop specific compounds based on their geography and the availability of ingredients.
Need of the Hour
Product packaging plays a very prominent role in the consumer’s purchase decision. Simultaneously, the global shift towards environmentally conscious development is also evident. While the polymer price today, when it comes to degradable options might be a minor setback in the long-term implications of our actions.
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The pandemic has greatly shifted consumer perception around packaging. Minimal, robust solutions are increasingly preferred by both producers and consumers in the FMCG industry. This lowers production costs whilst also raising the brand’s stature as a responsible proponent of sustainability. It helps your business stand out in the crowd in an already crowded industry. Transitioning to digital technologies, switching to better materials, and optimizing the production process lets your business build a sound foundation for the coming years of economic boom India is setting off on.