Do we care about what product packaging is made of? Do we opt for recyclable packaging when shopping? Are we aware of the environmental benefits of paper and cardboard packaging? «Two Sides», an international nonprofit organisation working to promote a sustainable economy, decided to find out by surveying 5,900 citizens in nine European countries about their consumption habits. By doing so, we were able to find out more about our preferences and perceptions regarding the packaging materials used in the products we consume. The results are revealing.
Respondents were asked to choose their preferred packaging material based on environmental, practical or aesthetic factors and were given the options of paper/cardboard, glass, metal or plastic. The majority, 63%, chose paper/cardboard as the most environmentally-friendly material. The second most eco-friendly material was glass with 27%. When asked which is the easiest to separate at home, 72% also chose paper and cardboard. And, in regard to which material they think is the easiest to recycle, 57% chose paper and cardboard. In short, paper and cardboard packaging is the consumer’s favourite, far ahead of other materials, predominantly for environmental reasons.
100% recyclable nano-micro corrugated cardboard boxes THEPACK© García de Pou.
54% opt for paper and cardboard because it is the cheapest. 62% say it is the lightest. 37% consider it the safest and 40% the most practical. On the other hand, more than half believe that higher taxes should be paid on nonrecyclable packaging to discourage its manufacture and consumption. (You can see the full study of “Two Sides” here).
The European study of consumer preferences, perceptions and attitudes on packaging.
The survey also shows that consumers appreciate the efforts of shops that choose to offer this type of sustainable packaging to their customers, as well as shops that use products with forest certification and eco labels or offer, for example, paper shopping bags. Moreover, 66% of consumers prefer the products they buy online to be delivered to their homes in paper or cardboard packaging rather than plastic.
Garcia de Pou paper bags.
The study also shows, however, that there is still a great lack of knowledge about the sustainability of paper and cardboard packaging. 69% of respondents believe that reforestation for the production of packaging made from this material is positive, which means that 31% still believe otherwise.
To give an example: in Europe, between 2005 and 2020, forests grew by 58,390 square kilometres, an area larger than Switzerland. Most people, however, are not aware of these figures, with only 11% of the opinion that forests have increased in recent years. What’s more, only two out of ten respondents believe that the recycling rate for paper is greater than 60%, when in fact 84% of paper and cardboard packaging was recycled in Europe in 2019.
Based on the survey, it can be concluded that, at a time with a clear need for a circular economy and consumption, the paper and cardboard packaging industry must also be able to back itself up with the relevant evidence. And one of the most convincing arguments is that paper is one of the few materials with a 100% circular life cycle. More than enough reason to opt for it.
