More than four fifths (83%) of fashion brands and retailers in the UK, US and Australia have implemented the use of sustainable packaging, however more needs to be done to ensure such measures are the norm, a study by Aquapak Polymers has found.
Aquapak Polymers, a developer of polymer-based material technologies, surveyed board directors and senior executives of fashion brands and retailers to determine the level to which they are embracing sustainability when it comes to packaging.
‘Room for improvement’
When asked how they would rate their company’s focus on using sustainable packaging at present, close to half (45%) of fashion executives said they only use sustainable materials, while 38% said they have started to use them but there’s ‘room for improvement’.
At the same time, 14% of respondents said there’s little focus in the business on using sustainable packaging materials at present, and 3% said they ‘aren’t a priority’.
Two-thirds of respondents indicated that they are currently using bioplastics, derived from renewable biomass sources like starch, oils, woodchips, and sawdust, in their packaging.
Additionally, over half (57%) reported utilising paperboard, while 52% mentioned employing multi-material combinations such as paper and plastic. Furthermore, 48% stated their adoption of new polymers with equivalent properties to plastic but without environmental harm.
Future forecasts
Respondents were also asked to estimate how effective their company’s use of sustainable packaging will be in three years’ time. The majority (76%) said it would be ‘good’, while 15% answered ‘excellent’ and 9% answered ‘average’.
The research indicates that paperboard is the primary choice among 71% of fashion brands and retailers to replace plastic in the next three years, followed by new polymers at 69%, and multi-material solutions at 57%.
“Our study shows that sustainable packaging is on the boardroom agenda of fashion brands and retailers,” commented Mark Lapping, CEO of Aquapak.
“They are already exploring different types of materials to replace plastic, with a shift to paperboard and new polymers which provide garment and merchandise protection, but do not have any of the environmental problems associated with conventional plastic.”
In this new era of sustainability, businesses need to adapt. Keep up to date with the latest developments at www.sustainabilityonline.net.
