Skip to main content
Sister Publication Links
  • Plastics News
  • Plastics News China
  • European Rubber Journal
SustainablePlasticsFINAL
Subscribe
  • Login
  • Register
  • SUBSCRIBE
  • News
    • Recycling
    • Sustainability
    • Bioplastics
    • Technology & Materials
    • Unilever, Alibaba launch China’s first large-scale closed-loop plastic recycling system
      IneosStyrolution-Antwerp-main_i.jpg
      EU provides funding for sustainable ABS project
      Sabic and Plastic Energy to start construction on new commercial-scale recycling unit
      Itero to build plastic waste recycling plant at Brightlands Chemelot Campus
    • Vinyl organisations in US, Australia sign MOU to explore sustainability programme reciprocity
      IneosStyrolution-Antwerp-main_i.jpg
      EU provides funding for sustainable ABS project
      Huhtamaki welcomes LCA results on environmental impact of single-use packaging
      Flexible packaging industry seeks stronger alignment with circular economy ambitions
    • Covestro adds its bio-TPUs to Desmopan product range
      Yield10 Bioscience announces milestone achievement with plant-made PHA
      Novamont advances vertical integration growth strategy with acquisition BioBag
      British researchers make sustainable polymer from sugars in wood
    • Injection Moulding
    • Blow Moulding
    • Extrusion
    • Thermoforming
    • 3D printing
    • Technology
    • Materials
    • Machinery
  • Opinion
    • View Point
    • A year to remember
      Opinion: California introduces world’s toughest plastic bottle recycling legislature – will other markets follow?
      Opinion: What to expect from plastic that protects our kids
      Legislation is catching up with our Lifestyle goals
  • Events
    • Our Exhibitions
    • Plastics Industry Awards (PIA)
    • Ask the Expert
    • Sustainable Plastics Live
    • Reifenhäuser Technologies Livestreams
    • Plastics News Europe Live Archives
    • Plastics Recycling Show Europe
  • Prices & Resources
    • Polymer Prices
    • Data Reports
    • White Papers
  • Contact
    • Advertise
    • Media Pack
  • Subscribe
    • Magazine
    • Newsletters
    • List Rental
  • Digital magazine
    • Digital Magazine
  • Multimedia
MENU
Breadcrumb
  1. Home
  2. News
February 07, 2013 06:00 AM

Review: guide poses green questions

Plastic News Europe
  • Tweet
  • Share
  • Share
  • Email
  • More
    Print

    The title of a new book offering advice on packaging and sustainability asks: Why shrink-wrap a cucumber? It's a question that has troubled many people looking to reduce the environmental impact of packaging, not just consumers but also packaging designers, who are the target market for this guide.

    The authors, Laurel Miller and Stephen Aldridge, who have worked at major packaging design groups, say it is a misconception that shrink wrapping a cucumber is “overpackaging”. A wrapped cucumber lasts more than three times as long as an unwrapped one and loses only 1.5% of its weight through evaporation after 14 days. A cucumber that is not wrapped after picking loses 3.5% of its weight after only three days.

    The cucumber example illustrates how consumers often focus on the post-use phase of packaging without considering the pack's function. Despite the book's title, it contains only a small reference to the carbon footprint of food waste. It does acknowledge the positive role packaging plays in protecting and preserving food and goods. But food and drink waste is arguably a bigger problem than packaging waste and yet receives much less attention in the public debate.

    Chapters on packaging and the environment show the difficult challenge for packaging designers faced with pressures that emerge from recycling, lightweighting, material substitution and other channels. These pressures often conflict with each other and new solutions may come with their own environmental problems. A chapter on bioplastics highlights the tangled issues around compostability, recycling and land use.

    A good section of the book discusses strategies available to designers to create new packs that are both ‘green' and eye catching. Methods include optimising shape and lightweighting to reduce the amount of material used.

    A directory of materials and packaging formats provides a useful reference for designers who may work with a variety of materials. In this, a designer can quickly discover the environmental positives and negatives for PET, HDPE, PVC, bioplastics, metals, glass and moulded pulps among other materials.

    This book shows there are lots of questions and no easy answers when trying to make packaging greener, but at least it attempts to help designers make more informed decisions.

    The guide is available at www.laurenceking.com

    Get our newsletters

    Staying current is easy with Sustainable Plastics' news delivered straight to your inbox, free of charge.

    Reserve your subscription today

    Subscriptions to Sustainable Plastics, the leading Pan-European magazine for the circular plastics industry are coming soon.

    Subscribe now
    Connect with Us
    • LinkedIn
    • Twitter

    "In a changing world, Sustainable Plastics is a constant: a platform the plastics industry can rely on to deliver the news and knowhow impacting the industry going forward”

    SustainablePlasticsFINAL
    Contact Us

    11 Ironmonger Lane, EC2V 8EY
    United Kingdom 
    Tel: +44 (0)1622 370570

    Customer Service:
    1-313-446-0450

    [email protected]

     

    Resources
    • Advertise
    • Sitemap
    • Careers
    • Subscribe
    Affiliates
    • Plastics News
    • Plastics News China
    • LSR World
    • European Rubber Journal
    • Urethanes Technology
    • Tire Business
    • Rubber & Plastics News
    • Automotive News
    • Automotive News Europe
    • Crain Publications
    Legal
    • Terms and Conditions
    • Privacy Policy
    • Privacy Request
    Copyright © 1996-2021. Crain Communications, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
    • News
      • Recycling
      • Sustainability
      • Bioplastics
      • Technology & Materials
        • Injection Moulding
        • Blow Moulding
        • Extrusion
        • Thermoforming
        • 3D printing
        • Technology
        • Materials
        • Machinery
    • Opinion
      • View Point
    • Events
      • Our Exhibitions
        • Plastics Recycling Show Europe
      • Plastics Industry Awards (PIA)
      • Ask the Expert
      • Sustainable Plastics Live
      • Reifenhäuser Technologies Livestreams
      • Plastics News Europe Live Archives
    • Prices & Resources
      • Polymer Prices
      • Data Reports
      • White Papers
    • Contact
      • Advertise
      • Media Pack
    • Subscribe
      • Magazine
      • Newsletters
      • List Rental
    • Digital magazine
      • Digital Magazine
    • Multimedia