Rethinking plastic’s status in sustainability

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Rethinking plastic’s status in sustainability

9 May 2023

Joanie Spencer

Since 2008, Joanie Spencer has covered the retail and wholesale sides of the baking industry.
Serving associations such as the American Society of Baking (ASB) and BEMA, Joanie is also in demand as an industry presenter on bakery operations and trends. She holds a bachelor’s degree in communication from Rockhurst University and a master’s degree in journalism from the University of Missouri.

When she’s not running or playing soccer, Joanie spends her time with her husband and 11-year-old son.

DUSSELDORF, GERMANY — It wasn’t long ago that plastic was vilified in sustainability efforts, with a push to reduce it … or even eradicate it altogether. But goals for sustainability are changing at a rapid pace as factors such as infrastructure, market-specific challenges — and even individual interpretations of what it means to be sustainable — evolve.

During a panel discussion at interpack, taking place May 4-10 in Dusseldorf, Mark van der Burgt, chief commercial officer of Vetipak; Dan Coppins, packing technologist and quality manager of KMI Brands; Ron Puvak, executive director of the Contract Packaging Association of North America; Vincent Mooij, director of Circpack by Veolia; and moderator Paul Jenkins, managing director of ThePackHub, discussed the state of global sustainability and if manufacturing is on track to meet its goals by 2025.

As new technologies emerge and definitions shift, reality has set in for what’s actually achievable. One such evolution is how plastic fits into the sustainability equation.

“Plastic has been proved scientifically to not be the devil it was once thought of,” Mooij said. He also pointed out that developing materials as alternatives to plastic often comes at a cost in the supply chain that might run counter to the efficiency in using plastic.

“The biggest issue where we haven’t really thought about plastic is the incorrect disposal of it,” he said. “If you use it properly in the supply chain, and dispose of it correctly, there are solutions. The issue is understanding how we can better control it.”

When looking at sustainability solutions, it’s more important to see the issue holistically than it is to identify one single factor to eliminate.

“Plastics can be a great tool, and you can use them in good ways,” Mooij said. “But we have also seen downsides.”

“The biggest issue where we haven’t really thought about plastic is the incorrect disposal of it. If you use it properly in the supply chain, and dispose of it correctly, there are solutions.”— Vincent Mooij | director | Circpack by Veolia

That said, when plastic has serious implications on oceanic wildlife, for instance, it’s hard to improve the consumer relationship with it. Mooij noted that infrastructure comes into play here.

“If you look at where much of the ocean plastics come from, it’s often the territories where there’s hardly any infrastructure,” he said. “So, what can be the role of packaging companies and brand owners to really ensure that this infrastructure is available in those countries where their products are on the market?”

That’s not a simple solution, especially in terms of achieving consumer education and buy-in. In the US in particular, where the recycling rate is around 30%, that buy-in can be a challenge.

“Even in developed societies like the US, we struggle,” Puvak said.

Real solutions require investment in all aspects of recyclability, including collection, sort and the end market.

While some may argue the business case for plastic reuse, it’s important to keep the end market in mind.

It’s becoming clearer all the time that sustainability goals cannot be deadline-driven. It’s about making incremental change that keeps solutions moving forward in ways that do good without creating other problems up or down the chain.

For plastic, that seems to be the case.

“If there’s money to be made, people will find a way to make it,” Puvak said. “We’ve got new recycling technologies coming on board … and they have a lot of hope. The people who are putting the money into these technologies are in the polymer industry, so this is an extension of their business, and that’s more positive than we’ve ever seen before.”

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