Seven Departments Push Green Packaging: FMCG Brands Accelerate Plastic Reduction and Circularity

Daily FMCG packaging is undergoing a green transformation: policy is driving pollution and carbon reduction, while brands are accelerating material switching and packaging reduction.

International Packaging Information Network / China Packaging Network (rewritten from public reporting)

Recently, the Ministry of Ecology and Environment and six other departments issued the Implementation Plan for Synergizing Pollution Reduction and Carbon Reduction. It calls for reducing pollutants and carbon emissions at the source, promoting a simple, green, low-carbon lifestyle, expanding green and low-carbon product supply and consumption, advancing a unified green product certification and labeling system, improving green product promotion, and promoting green packaging and printing reduction by cutting printing area and color variety.

For daily fast-moving consumer goods, packaging bottles, bags, tubes, color boxes and cartons are used in huge volumes. Most are discarded after a single use, consuming plastic, pulp and other resources.

To cut carbon emissions and save resources, more FMCG companies are replacing hard-to-degrade plastics with materials that are easier to recycle.

Old Spice & Secret

launched all-paper, zero-plastic antiperspirant packaging. Made from recycled paper, it uses a push-pull design instead of a can and can replace plastic and other packaging materials. Data shows that replacing current antiperspirant packaging with recycled paper or other recyclable materials could reduce plastic waste each year.

If recycled paper or other recyclable materials replaced today's antiperspirant packaging, the annual reduction in plastic waste would be significant.

In addition, Plant Philosophy's Wild Little Green Bottle switched to a new aluminum bottle, replacing its original plastic packaging and lowering plastic use.

The Big Red Bottle was upgraded from a non-recyclable plastic bottle to recyclable glass bottle packaging, cutting plastic use in just one year by an amount comparable to the plastic in mineral water bottles.

P&G's razor packaging has also begun using paper liners instead of plastic liners.

Through scientific calculation, reducing packaging and instruction materials saves resources and costs, and has become a key direction for daily chemical companies seeking energy savings. According to a source from P&G Beauty, the company accurately calculates load-bearing capacity and optimizes the middle layer weight of cartons, reducing paperboard use annually.

Paperboard consumption has been reduced as a result. In product transport, reusable turnover boxes carry packaging materials, cutting the number of cartons scrapped each year and saving paperboard.

The use of reusable turnover boxes also prevents many cartons from being discarded and conserves paperboard resources.

It is understood that

the Big Red Bottle no longer uses a paper instruction leaflet. Consumers can scan a QR code to access product information. The shift to electronic instructions cuts paper use every year.

Electronic instructions also reduce paper consumption and save related resources.

Reusable logistics packaging boxes are a current focus for FMCG companies. Because they involve upstream suppliers and downstream sellers, circular use and energy savings require whole-chain collaboration. P&G has developed reusable circular packaging boxes suitable for FMCG and works with upstream suppliers to build a circular-use network. It has also teamed up with e-commerce platforms to complete a closed-loop recycling network for FMCG.

According to reports, as of the reported month,

P&G has launched a batch of circular box products and plans to expand into multiple categories in the coming months, deploying more circular boxes.

The plan is expected to cover more categories and significantly expand circular box use.

Converted, this is equivalent to reducing a large number of cartons each year.

It also reduces paper consumption.

and lowers paper use by a related tonnage.

E-commerce packaging innovation is another important route to continuous energy saving and emission reduction. Some companies develop

greener e-commerce packaging based on their product needs. For example, the air capsule has applied for multiple global patents and obtained China's dual-easy certification (plastic products that are easy to recycle and easy to regenerate).

By inflating the packaging, the air capsule saves materials and reduces packaging weight. It also lowers vibration during mailing, cutting energy consumption while keeping items safe.

While improving packaging, daily chemical and FMCG companies also call on consumers to join environmental action and achieve energy savings and emission reduction. Xu Min, chairman and CEO of P&G Greater China, said:

'One thread cannot make a cord, one tree cannot make a forest. P&G looks forward to joining hands with more partners to build a new pattern of sustainable production and consumption. In a rapidly changing global environment, we will remain consumer-centric and make sustainability a core competitive advantage.'

Many companies have integrated sustainability into offline shopping experiences. This year,

P&G joined six partners—JD Daojia, Yonghui, Walmart, RT-Mart, China Resources Vanguard and Wumart—to launch the 'Environmental Little Heroes, A Big Difference for the Earth' campaign across China. The campaign invites children and their families to take part in offline activities such as recognizing energy-saving labels, empty bottle recycling and turning waste into treasure, using children's actions to inspire families and bring sustainable lifestyles into millions of households.

Carbon peaking must be advanced step by step,

and carbon neutrality requires long-term effort. These goals may seem distant, but they are closely tied to the continuous actions of every company and individual.

—This article is reprinted from China Packaging Network (pack.cn), original link: http://news.pack.cn/show-379063.html