What is Circular Packaging?

Circular packaging is focused on the reduction and extended use of virgin materials to more sustainably package the products consumers use every day. Circular packaging puts the focus on:

• The reduction of overall packaging
• Making packaging recyclable or compostable
• Creating packaging from post-consumer recycled materials
• Making packaging reusable

Circular packaging fits perfectly into the idea of a circular economy, which the EPA defines as one that “reduces material use, redesigns materials, products, and services to be less resource intensive, and recaptures ‘waste’ as a resource to manufacture new materials and products.”

Waste Management Within a Circular Economic Model

A circular economy, or “cradle to cradle” model,  is a more sustainable alternative to the “cradle to grave” model in which raw materials are extracted, processed, and used to create products that are eventually disposed of.  The Ellen MacArthur Foundation created a Butterfly Diagram to illustrate the continuous flow and life cycle of materials in a circular economy with lines representing the various avenues of improving or extending the circularity of a product or package.  This model offers a side-by-side comparison of technical and biological circularity and how waste is reduced in each cycle:

• In the technical cycle, products and materials are kept in circulation through processes such as reuse, repair, re-manufacture, and recycling.
• In the biological cycle, the nutrients from biodegradable materials are returned to the Earth to regenerate nature.

As you can see in the diagram’s technical cycle, recylcing is only one of many bands of circularity, though it is a very important one. The age-old saying “Reduce. Reuse. Recycle,” is in that order for a reason.

This returns us back into the continuous loop of circular packaging and waste collection.

Sustainable Packaging in a Circular Economy

Circular Economy: Food and Product Packaging

Packaging is often used for the purpose to protect the food or product it contains. Without protective packaging, spoiled food and damaged  products can result in significant envorinmental and economic impacts, including rising food waste and plastic waste, and larger landfills.

When it comes to the packaging industry, it’s important to consider the minimal amount of packaging made, with the right material, with the lowest environmental impact, that can still protect the product or food within it.

Ask yourself these questions when choosing packaging material for your value chain:

• Does the packaging need to provide a moisture barrier?
• Does it need to withstand extreme hot or cold temperatures?
• Does it need to travel long distances and therefore may need to be lighter in weight to decrease transportation costs and emissions?
• Is the package designed to be reused and therefore should have superior strength or durability to withstand multiple uses?

There is no silver bullet to achieving the balance of sustainable packaging solutions. But truly circular packaging strategies must take into account the many different needs, variables, and limitations of each package and its functionality for each product it’s designed to serve.

Circular Economy: Plastic Packaging and Non-Plastic Packaging

In its simplest form, nature provides its own perfect packaging. Think about banana peels or egg shells – both are examples of natural protective barriers created to preserve the contents inside. Unfortunately, not all products come with their own inherent protective packaging.

That’s where packaging innovation comes into play.

Historically, packaging materials have been made of paper or fiber raw materials, which then evolved to include cardboard boxes, paperboard and other types of paper packaging. Paper is a largely renewable material that can often be recyclable, compostable, and biodegradable, making it great for the circular economy. Changing market dynamics, overall access to recycling, and consumer education are some of the current challenges impacting paper recycling.

Packaging innovation moved on to glass and metal packaging, which are often used for food and beverages. These materials are often highly recyclable and can be made with high amounts of recycled content, pulling the same material back into new packaging for use again and again. Challenges in community access and education, costs at the Materials Recovery Facility (MRF), and highly regional end markets present barriers to increasing the amount of residential glass and metal recycled.

Further packaging innovation led to the development of plastic packaging, which has a wide range of uses due to its lightweight and protective moisture barrier, among other characteristics. But some types of plastic packaging (like single-use plastic bags) see challenges when it comes to recyclability based on the current recycling infrastructure that exists at scale today. For example, while PET plastic bottles can become recycled plastic, there is broad recognition that the recycling rate must double—or even triple—to achieve a system with compelling circularity.

Circular packaging principles should be applied to all packaging materials (plastic, paper, metal, and glass) and taken into consideration at the packaging design state for any product or package.

Creating a sustainable future for innovative packaging is possible and is already happening at scale through initiatives such as The Recycling Partnership’s Film and Flexibles, PET, and Polypropylene Recycling Coalitions.

Not sure if your package is designed with circularity in mind?

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