The future of packaging in Europe – POLITICO

In Europe, where food waste remains a significant challenge and the pressure of climate change is accelerating, the need for food security continues. And people across Europe, already anxious about the environmental impact of what they use and consume, should not have to worry about their packaging.

We need better packaging that helps protect our planet’s climate and biodiversity, while bringing essential nutrients and food to consumers in a safe and affordable way. Better packaging that provides long-term storage for highly nutritious food, minimizes food waste and delivers a resilient and secure supply chain. And better packaging that is responsibly sourced and produced, easy to collect and recycle, and not polluting our environment after use.

If well implemented, the EU’s efforts could have a huge impact: imagine a world where packaging is responsibly sourced from renewable materials, while at the same time being designed with circularity in mind. Such materials not only protect biodiversity, but also ensure that the packaging we use today replenishes nature rather than depletes it.

This is the ambition the packaging sector needs to strive toward. At SIG, we already partner with WWF on forest conservation projects, work with Forest Stewardship Council^TM (FSC™ trademark license code: FSC™ C020428) and have committed to work with our supply chain partners to boost sustainable forestry. But industry can go further; the EU’s Nature Restoration Law can now open the doors for nature regeneration and a true circular economy across Europe. We are ready to support policymakers here.

The hidden carbon cost of packaging
The environmental impact of packaging is not limited to visible waste such as plastic bottles polluting our oceans. The carbon footprint associated with production, transportation, and disposal processes is also a significant contributor to global greenhouse gas emissions. We should strive to scale low-carbon food and drink packaging solutions and eliminate large amounts of emissions. To do this, we must acknowledge the need to rethink our approach to packaging materials and design.

Food and beverage packaging should be lightweight and space-efficient, following function first. If every food and beverage product came in the lowest carbon packaging available — from production through disposal — the impact on our climate would be considerable, helping us fight back against the looming threat of climate change. We should set our sight on low-carbon food and drink packaging solutions, so that we can move toward a more sustainable future.