Throwing it all away

Play Your Card Right

The packaging conundrum for the pizza industry is ongoing. Generally made of cardboard, boxes are light, cheap, stackable and suitable for transportation – with the basic aim of keeping the produce warm and crispy during its journey. The topic even has a Wikipedia page, telling us that the first patent of a corrugated cardboard box applied in 1963. In 1966, the owner of a somewhat unknown US pizza chain called Domino’s hired a packaging company to make a corrugated cardboard box.

Six decades on, the basic tenets have not really changed, but the discussion around packaging is more prevalent than ever – and we must all take some responsibility.

“Have you ever noticed how head-scratchingly normalised our destructive economy is?” asks Ecoveritas commercial manager, Sandy Dhesi.

“If fossil fields suddenly appeared overnight, their catastrophic impact would horrify us. But these substances have so incrementally become part of everyday life nearly everywhere on Earth, that their toxic side effects are largely accepted and ignored. This curtails any actions we can take against the climate crisis – because it doesn’t feel like a crisis.”

Ecoveritas is an environmental compliance data specialist, helping businesses efficiently minimise the impact of packaging. Its very existence is reflective of the modern corporate mindset, with both short- and long-term thinking on sustainability.

“It’s time we talked about the elephant crashing around the room: overconsumption,” continued Dhesi. “Amiable consumers, who have good intentions and aspire to better lives? Or an unhappy place fuelled by excess? Either way, we have the unfathomable dilemma of securing jobs in supply chains premised on depleting the planet’s resources, or robbing millions of people of their livelihoods to achieve global environmental goals.”

Herein lies the essential dichotomy. We have an addiction to buying, consuming, then throwing away, with the planet paying the price. A cultural revolution is underway in terms of recognition and a general acceptance by most that there is a problem – but we have such a long way to go.

“The real struggle with waste occurs around behavioural economics and our ability to coerce the wider public to embrace a smart, context-sensitive, generational approach to a heavily nuanced agenda. Attitudes to the material acquisition have varied greatly through the ages – and in many ways, we’re more comfortable than ever before. But consider for a moment how our sheltered, temperature-controlled, overfed, under-challenged lives could be the leading cause of many of our most urgent physical and mental health issues.

“We are devouring the planet’s resources at a rate 1.7 times faster than it can regenerate. Now, more than ever, we should be swimming upstream against the undercurrents of comfort and ease that we seek and have grown unquestioningly used to,” said Dhesi.

So, what should we be doing? “As an alternative to a linear economy, circular systems focus on closing resource flows, extending product life cycles, creating new by-products through reuse, recycling and regenerative techniques, or building innovative community-sharing models of construction. Large and transnational businesses must properly account for their impacts on biodiversity and their dependency on it. Having to disclose those impacts puts healthy pressure on them, both internally and externally. If people buy less stuff, we will see immediate drops in emissions, resource consumption and pollution, unlike anything we’ve achieved with green technology,” said Dhesi.

Plate Expectations

There is no one-size-fits-all solution, but the packaging sector needs to be aware of its responsibilities. Behavioural trends are incredibly difficult to shift, in what is ultimately a complex subject matter, but consumers are undeniably open to change.

A survey by Sapio Research, on behalf of Celebration Packaging, examined understanding of the bans on singleuse plastic packaging, alternative materials available and expectations around reusables. Bans on the sale of single-use packaging, including cutlery, are already in place in Scotland and Northern Ireland and will be introduced in England and Wales in October 2023.

The numbers revealed that more than half (53%) of consumers still expect a food outlet or takeaway to provide cutlery, while 46% were happy to carry their own cutlery for consuming food on the go. In place of single-use plastic cutlery, more than half of consumers would prefer reusable bamboo (54%) or metal (53%).

“With the ban on single-use plastic, we need to offer the best recyclable or compostable alternatives, or be able to supply viable reusable options,” said Celebration Packaging managing director, Nick Burton. “It is important to deliver on consumer expectations on reusables, and ensure they have the longest possible life.”

“We often unwittingly build barriers to seeing what is in front of us,” continued Dhesi. “Both as individuals and organisations, we can hold on to flawed beliefs and conform to established processes that can interfere with our perceptions. In the shape of data, clear insight can transform how we understand things, decisions and actions.

“Our current system values a chopped-down tree more than a growing one. We are only awakening to the economic importance of trees, based on their important role in sequestering and storing carbon, regulating temperatures, strengthening food resilience and reducing noise and air pollution. But rethinking materials, products and services without rethinking their value is senseless. Constant upskilling, evolution and adaptation to the new, without compromising integrity, will play a massive role in our future success in tackling the waste challenge.”

Innovations are constantly emerging around manufacturing processes and disposability, which address long-term behaviour as well as legislation. And the message from Dhesi is unerringly straightforward: “The unpalatable fact is that the UK still produces too much waste, and we don’t recycle enough. In the UK, we’re falling short of our 2050 target to prepare 65% of municipal waste for reuse, recycling and plastic packaging.

“Increasing public awareness will support positive changes in consumer behaviour. People want to do the right thing, and the brands that explore sustainable options first will catch the eco-conscious eye and achieve cut-through. The time to start is now – the circular economy can be a solution to overcome this dilemma,” Dhesi concluded.

Twenty Seconds To Comply

Basically, future brand leaders with sustainability goals need to stand up. Getting noticed is notoriously difficult, especially with consumer confidence at an all-time low, but it could also be seen as an opportunistic moment.

“Packaging design is crucial, with only 20 seconds to attract a potential customer’s attention,” said Renan Joel, managing director, packaging at Easyfairs. “It’s more prudent than ever for companies to shift focus to managing the performance of their existing offerings. There is far less risk attached to adjusting their customer offer, sizing, branding and pack messages, so they can attract maximum attention and sales.

“One of the easiest ways to stand out is by colour choice –instantly pulling the consumer’s eyes to your product. The key here is using the front of the packaging to share information the consumer would find appealing. You should communicate what the brand is about, what it stands for and what the product is,” said Joel.

Earlier this year, a survey of 1,221 respondents conducted by DS Smith – a leading provider of sustainable packaging solutions – revealed some worrying statistics. Using an online data collection methodology in collaboration with Dynata, 40% of those consumers did not recycle their pizza boxes at end of life. However, recycling behaviour was generally high, with 43% doing it all the time. Regarding pizza boxes, 67% of adults believe them to be a recyclable form of packaging, leading them to rank fifth beneath water bottles at 88%, newspapers or magazines at [82%] and glass jars and milk cartons [75%].

DS Smith has also stepped up production of its recyclable pizza pad – an insert for use under the pies in boxes. It sells 165 million each year. The customisable, 100% recyclable and sustainable pizza pad marks an example of the company’s renewable, fibre-based packaging solutions.

So, the question is, what’s next for UK pizza packaging? Whatever it is, you get the feeling that the conventional box design has a fair bit of mileage yet.