Packaging

The evolution of packaging

The e-commerce boom has meant a scramble for packaging. By JAMES FRANCIS

DID YOU KNOW?

• In 2019, the global packaging market reached R13-trillion and is anticipated to reach R23.5-trillion by 2027 according to Research and Markets. • Plastic still leads the market, valued at R4.9-trillion in 2020 (Grand View Research), but cardboard is not far behind. • The corrugated board packaging market was valued at R3.7-trillion in 2019, and is projected to reach R4.8-trillion by 2025 according to Research and Markets.

There is overwhelming evidence that e-commerce enjoyed an enormous boost during the pandemic.

That’s according to the Global Ecommerce Update 2021 report, which shows that while global physical retail contracted by 3 per cent, e-commerce retail grew by 27.6 per cent. The habit appears to have stuck and independent research company Insider Intelligence predicts a further 16.5 per cent growth rate for 2021.

The surge caused an unprecedented scramble for packaging, leading to a cardboard shortage as major e-commerce companies bought up stock to meet demand. Though demand has balanced out, the packaging industry is playing catch-up to new market demands.

According to ThePackHub’s Global Packaging

Trends Compendium 2021, there are nine new packaging trends – mostly fuelled by the e-commerce market. These include presentation sleeves for cans and hygienic cardboard layers.

Secondary packaging

And while a purchase arrives in a box and is not displayed on a shelf, for example, in a carton of cigarettes, experts believe the need remains for secondary packaging: the branded packaging that contains the packaged products.

These may seem less relevant if the goods arrive in a courier box, but says Niel Burg, creative director at branding and packaging design agency Burg Design, secondary packaging plays a signifi cant role in creating new retail experiences for customers. “We believe that secondary packaging is even more important in the e-commerce space, which has become retail therapy during this pandemic. Secondary packaging evokes an emotion of excitement, similar to unwrapping a birthday gift. It gives a brand a certain degree of quality and assurance. This is what turns a customer into repeat business.”

Branding is key, but so is ensuring a customer gets their order in one piece. As Burg says, “There is no greater disappointment than when you receive your parcel and your purchased product is damaged. It’s important to take the

“It’s important to take the necessary steps to ensure the packaging arrives in the same condition that it left the warehouse.” – Niel Burg

necessary steps to ensure the packaging arrives in the same condition that it left the warehouse.”

New demands

According to Justin Drennan, CEO of logistics-as-a-service-provider Parcelninja, e-commerce places new demands on packaging. “Products need to be packaged correctly for e-commerce, which differs considerably from traditional retail. We adhere to drop tests, package requirements and a stringent on-boarding process. We fi nd most packaging is inadequate and have a process to improve product packaging or repack products correctly.”

Many retailers rely on their logistics partners – couriers and warehousing – to put the proper measures in place. These include parcel tracking and security, supported through technology service platforms. “We are working together with customers to improve this further upstream, and if not possible we offer services to help improve the quality of the packaging, in adherence to our packaging standards,” says Drennan.

“In order to ensure quality of delivery, we need to make sure products are packaged appropriately for e-commerce.”

FAST FACT

Packaging is divided into three classes: primary; secondary and tertiary. 1. Primary packaging is branded “retail” packaging and how you’d encounter a product on a retail shelf. 2. Secondary packaging is branded exterior packaging that surrounds primary packaged products, such as a six pack of drinks, and sometimes acts as a display stand. 3. Tertiary packaging consists of the nondescript boxes that freight products, though these are also increasingly branded.

Going full circle

Most packaging ends up in landfi lls. Can we make it more sustainable? JAMES FRANCIS investigates

While demand from e-commerce has driven the global packaging industry to new heights, its potential for waste has also increased. As the Center for International Environmental Law reports, packaging accounts for 40 per cent of global plastics while 91 per cent of packaging is reported to land up in landfi lls.

Plastics are used for protective laminates, internal cushions and wrapping fi lms. But research shows consumers are seeking sustainable solutions, according to Timothy Beattie, general manager of PackMedia. “Research reveals climate change and higher social consciousness among consumers as well as relevant legislation are driving forces behind many product manufacturers’ packaging and product choices to replace plastics with biodegradable alternatives,” he says.

“Packaging that is designed for recycling or reuse, made from mono-materials, or otherwise lends itself to circularity is now the norm and is likely to endure.”

Pyrotec packaging

Empty spaces

Sustainability also relates to wasted space inside the packaging.

Timothy Beattie

PACKAGING DESIGN

The Sustainable Packaging Coalition’s design guidelines document defi nes sustainable packaging as: • Benefi cial, safe and healthy throughout its life cycle • Meets market criteria for performance and cost • Sourced, manufactured, transported and recycled using renewable energy • Maximises use of renewable or recycled source materials • Manufactured using clean production technologies and best practices • Made from materials healthy in all probable end-of-life scenarios • Physically designed to optimise materials and energy • Effectively recovered and utilised in biological or industrial cradle-to-cradle cycles

In a poll of 1 000 adults in November 2020, packaging fi rm D.S. Smith revealed that 93 per cent of recipients reported receiving packages with wasted space, and 73 per cent said they received boxes twice or larger the size than what was needed.

Biodegradable plastics are increasingly gaining favour. As Frank McDouall, director of plastics alternatives company Bonnie Bio says, “Mother Nature can then take care of it.” “China plans to phase out single-use plastics by between 2022 and 2025, prompting signifi cant investment in producing raw materials for biodegradable alternatives.

McDouall, who considers recycling unreliable, believes it’s critical we invest in materials that can go “full circle” rather than hoping they will be reclaimed through recycling or effi cient packaging. “Don’t try and make a broken thing work,” he says. “Rather, revisit the whole journey and make things out of materials that can go full circle so that even if it falls out of the recycling matrix, nature can sort it in its own time and it’s not going to be toxic to the environment. That’s the key thing.

FAST FACT

In 2017, more than 50 per cent of consumers rated the sustainability of paper-based packaging as very high according to APP Paper & Packaging Consumer Trends.

A 2021 poll from Ranpak among US consumers found that 78 per cent wish more brands used paper packaging, and 68 per cent would favour retailers that offer plastic-free packaging choices.