Packaging Strategy: download Defra’s document and read industry reactions

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Industry must engage positively with strategy

The Government certainly appears to have taken a positive step in trying to move forward together with the packaging industry. That has to be seen in general terms as a good step move for all concerned.

From a Benson Group perspective it is certainly good also to see a positive attitude towards cartons and cartonboard. There had previously been a focus on packaging in terms of weight, which is not necessarily the best view for cartons, but now the focus appears very much more towards sustainability and carbon footprint, which does undoubtedly favour cartonboard packaging.

As an industry I believe that we have to engage positively with the strategy that has been put forward, and continue to drive our focus towards sustainability and the reduction of carbon footprint.

Mark Kerridge
Managing director
Benson Group

Corrugated conspicuous by its absence

There is a welcome recognition of the paper packaging industry’s recycling success story with comments such as “The UK regularly exceeds its paper packaging recycling targets … due mostly to the commercial and industrial stream, from where material is collected easily and cheaply.”

Corrugated packaging is largely conspicuous by its absence in the report as this is clearly one area of packaging where Defra can see the recycling loop working as it would wish.

Defra’s recognition of the need to improve the quality of recyclate emanating from UK waste streams, particularly those from domestic sources, alongside the call for Local Authorities to treat recycling as a source of revenue, is also welcomed. This is an area where CPI has lobbied consistently as it sees this issue as fundamental to the future success of UK recycling schemes. Although it is right that Defra should push for higher recycling rates for other poorer performing materials, CPI says it will be a challenge to prevent this from impacting negatively on paper recycling as a whole, whether packaging or non packaging.

It would not be acceptable or efficient if the paper recycling industry ended up having to deal with a poorer quality raw material simply to ensure other materials raised their recycling performance.

Another major theme of the report welcomed by CPI is the emphasis on optimising packaging. This is another area where the corrugated packaging industry has been working hard with its customers. It is encouraging them to move towards specifying packaging materials based on performance criteria. This allows customers to ‘rightweight’ their boxes, which means using the exact amount of materials necessary to make distribution of goods as efficient and sustainable as possible.

CPI also supports Defra’s wish to improve consumer education about packaging and hopes this is one area where Defra will take the lead. Packaging still has a disproportionately high profile in the environmental debate when there are many other much bigger environmental issues which should be commanding the public’s attention, such as food waste.

Andrew Barnetson
Corrugated sector manager
Confederation of Paper Industries

Benefits of plastic packaging are acknowledged

“Plastics packaging plays an essential role in reducing waste and maximising the efficient use of resources, it is great to see that the Defra strategy acknowledges this fact and that even the title ‘Making the most of packaging’ recognizes the many benefits that the efficient use of packaging can offer society’.

Anthony Roberts
Senior Executive – Public Affairs
British Plastics Federation

Strategy welcome – but aluminium landfill ban would be impractical

“We’re pleased to see that Government has listened to views and debates from across the packaging industry, and that there are stretching ambitions for future recycling performance.   It’s good to see that our work on away from home recycling is recognised as important, and we look forward to helping examine and develop the ideas in the Strategy.

“For instance, the topic of landfill bans has made an appearance, and though  it is hard to see how this could be in any way practical, and we generally prefer persuasion and incentives  to legislative threats, we will of course co-operate with any work being done to explore the issues.   But on the whole we think the Strategy is a thorough piece of work which clarifies the Government’s views on future direction.”

Rick Hindley
Executive director
Alupro

Taking aluminium out of landfill will help improve drinks cans’ renewable image

“BCME, a trade organisation for beverage can producers, welcomes this strategy from the government. Something we consider to be extremely positive is the appreciation of metal packaging as a renewable resource, and not waste. Increasing recycling rates for metals makes great environmental and economic sense.

“For us, and others in the beverage industry, it’s something we’ve been focused on for some time, with initiatives such as Every Can Counts (www.everycancounts.co.uk) – a drinks can workplace and universities recycling scheme – now eight months down the line and in full swing. The programme was set up specifically as a way of collecting and recycling cans consumed away from home.

“The consideration of banning aluminium from landfill altogether is welcome from our perspective as life-cycle analysis confirms that improving recycling is the most effective way of reducing the can’s carbon footprint. Following substantial investment over the years, sufficient infrastructure already exists to recycle every can consumed in the UK. So we as an industry are well prepared.”

“The challenge for all of us is to help consumers appreciate the benefits of recycling and stop feeling guilty about packaging.”

John Revess
BCME

Focus on recycling and recyclability is excellent

“It is excellent to see that the Packaging Strategy highlights the use of recycled content and the recyclability of packaging.  The optimisation of packaging is key to further success in minimising the environmental impact of packaging and Nampak Plastics has been championing this approach for some time. 

“The Strategy also highlights the need for closing the resource loop.  Our long term commitment is to increase the quantity of recycled HDPE in our UK produced plastic milk bottles by up to 30% during 2011.  However, in order to support this there have to be improvements to local authority collection rates and the quality of recyclate recovered.  We are therefore pleased that the Strategy has highlighted these issues.” 

James Crick
Business development director
Nampak Plastics Europe

Green elements are right but what about consumer value?

“The report certainly has the right elements of environmental sensitivity, but must also weigh up the challenge of consumer expectation and value, as the packaging design process is both a complex and sensitive part of the customer journey.

“I agree that we should ban aluminium and glass from landfill, we should treat the waste as a valuable resource and perhaps incentivise householders to think of aluminium and glass as currency (as in the old days of Blue Peter collecting milk bottle tops for charity).

“It’s certainly true that the consumer should be encouraged to buy less plastic wrapped produce from supermarkets and buy more fresh produce from local greengrocers and farmers markets (with the dirt thrown in for free of course) all as part of a broader industry mover toward WYSIWYG (what you see is what you get)

“The issue of ullage (dead airspace in packaging) is a win win for business. There’s clearly a high margin in moving all that air around, so perhaps the government should levy a tax on the offenders and help deliver true value to consumers.”

Dave Brown
Chairman
The Brand Union

The start of a more cohesive waste strategy?

“In discussing the possibility of banning aluminium and glass from landfill sites, we have the beginnings of a more coordinated and cohesive waste prevention strategy. We have argued for some time that packaging materials in general and metals in particular are not waste but reusable resources – recycled metal cans save their own weight in virgin material and displace up to 95% of the required energy to make new ones.

“Also, understanding that net weight to landfill is the critical measure is thankfully leading to a more reasoned approach to materials rather than the sledgehammer gross weight metric. Linking the protection and preservation of food to the pack and the process remains critical as decisions being made in the supply chain can sometimes inadvertently create consequences which have a negative environmental impact.”

Nick Mullen
Director
Metal Packaging Manufacturers’ Association

A clear statement of the importance of recycling

“This is a very clear statement of the importance of recycling not just for the packaging industry but the whole supply chain, which  we welcome . Ten years ago Ardagh Glass set itself the goal of using all, available cullet  in the manufacture of our bottles and jars, and adapted our processes accordingly.

“However  we  have been disappointed of late by the quality and availability of  recyclate . We hope that this renewed commitment by Defra and its advisers to target the methods of collection will drive quality upwards, and enable us to achieve record levels of recycling . This will yield benefits  all round, for our business, for our customers, for the consumer and the environment.”

Ardagh Glass spokesperson

Strategy ignores consumer desire for convenience and choice

“There are two key buying factors that are not focused upon in this report: the consumer’s appetite for convenience and for choice. Brand owners will respond to market needs. There appears to be an appetite for ever more convenient access to food and drink, and a demand for ever more choice. We wholeheartedly welcome any initiative that drives sustainability into all packaged brands. We, as a creative agency, continue to work on innovation for sustainability projects because it is a consumer demand. However, it is not as big a demand as their appetite for choice and convenience.”

Julian Glyn-Owen
New business director
Boxer

PRN review will help recycling sector

“There’s a lot to like about the Government’s strategy. It’s very encouraging to see plans for a review of the PRN system, recyclability of packaging and providing incentives to stimulate the use of recycled content. All are important to driving the growth of the UK’s young recycling industry.”

Chris Dow
Managing director
Closed Loop Recycling

Policy needs to sort out collection network

“For a start, you can’t have a policy on packaging without a policy on products. And any policy on packaging that does not have a policy on energy from waste is an incomplete policy. There seems to be some focus on recyclability, but recyclability is not the problem – 85% of packaging is recyclable, while just 35% of packaging is actually recycled. The policy needs sort out the collection network and we only should talk about recyclability once recycling rates are much higher. Otherwise, the policy is missing the point.”

Dick Searle
Chief executive
Packaging Federation

Strategy recognises packaging’s role in cutting waste

“We really welcome the strategy because it recognises the role that packaging does actually play in reducing waste, rather than treating it simply as a waste problem in its own right. It’s great that people are talking about packaging reducing waste. We also strongly welcome the measures on increasing local authorities’ recycling rates – a lot still needs to happen but waste management companies and local authorities are really going in the right direction.”

Jane Bickerstaffe
Director
Incpen

Recovery and recycling are key

“We agree that it’s important for the Government’s packaging strategy to focus on waste prevention. That’s why members of the Food and Drink Federation have a bold ambition to send zero food and packaging waste from factories to landfill by 2015 and are working closely with WRAP and others to reduce the amount of packaging reaching households. Recovery and recycling are also important elements of any strategy and we look forward to working with Government to improve the country’s recycling infrastructure and to increase capacity in new technologies such as anaerobic digestion.”

Julian Hunt
Director of Communications
Food and Drink Federation

Focus on quality of recyclate hits the mark

“The strategy contains a lot of things that we have been lobbying on for a long time, so we welcome the document. We’re especially pleased by the focus on the quality of recyclate – it’s been an issue that has been holding us back. We would say, though, that the problem is not mixed glass but commingled collections and MRFs. We are also happy with the whole lifecycle approach and the move away from weight, which we feel has penalised glass unfairly as a material in the past.

“The strategy hasn’t quite got hold of the issue about glass from pubs and clubs – we would like to see that considered as being in the same category has household glass waste. It’s good that the government has taken the issue on board, though. Overall, this is a positive document and a good basis for further discussion with Defra.”

David Workman
Director general
British Glass

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