Sustainable Express Packaging: Lightweighting, Reusability and Multi-Stakeholder Action

Express delivery connects production supply at one end and consumer demand at the other, which is why it is often described as a 'barometer' of economic development and consumer vitality. As the sector continues to grow, green packaging is emerging as a future direction. Lightweight packaging, reusable express boxes and digital operation management are among the ways more companies are helping express packaging slim down and reduce its burden. (People's Daily Overseas Edition, March 7)

Rapid e-commerce growth has pushed the express delivery industry forward by leaps and bounds. During this year's Spring Festival travel rush alone, China collected 10.367 billion mail and express items in total, with an average daily volume of 259 million items—up 6.14% from the same period in 2022 and up 159% from the same period in 2019. While this rapid development makes production and daily life more convenient, it also creates a large amount of packaging waste; the resulting resource loss and environmental issues have drawn wide attention.

After relevant national authorities issued 291 national standards, including those for express packaging supplies, eight departments—among them the National Development and Reform Commission and the State Post Bureau—jointly released the Opinions on Accelerating the Green Transformation of Express Packaging in December 2020. The document called for 'promoting the application of recyclable express packaging' and set a clear goal: 10 million recyclable express packages in use by 2025. The Measures for the Administration of Mail and Express Packaging, effective March 12, 2021, encouraged delivery enterprises to 'establish information systems for recyclable packaging materials' and 'expand the scope of application of recyclable packaging materials.'

Last year, the National Development and Reform Commission, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology and other departments also issued the Implementation Plan for Promoting Green Consumption. It proposed actively promoting green express packaging and guiding e-commerce and express delivery companies to prioritize purchasing and using express packaging products with green certification, thereby advancing the sector's green transition. Yet actual conditions over the past two years show that while some progress has been made, results remain far from satisfactory. Ms. Xie from Haidian District, Beijing, noted that over-packaged parcels are still quite common; when higher-value goods are purchased, packaging is often wrapped tightly 'layer after layer,' a phenomenon that remains commonplace.

The report of the 20th National Congress of the Communist Party of China stated: 'Advocate green consumption and promote the formation of green and low-carbon production methods and lifestyles.' To make express packaging both slimmer and more eco-friendly, joint efforts are still required. Senders and express delivery companies should embrace green, reduced and recyclable practices; alongside packaging slimming, incentive policies should support green recycling and reuse, make the best use of materials and truly keep eco-friendly packaging 'circulating.' Only then can results be multiplied.

Small parcels serve big livelihoods. The postal and express delivery industry is an important part of ecological civilization construction, and express packaging governance is also a necessary requirement for high-quality development. Relevant departments are expected to strengthen supervision in accordance with the law: regularly spot-check products from express packaging supplies manufacturers, randomly test parcels with relevant equipment, and penalize express companies that use substandard packaging supplies. This would push companies to use compliant packaging and perform proper recycling and reuse.

At the same time, beyond enforcing supervision systems, localities should find ways to provide appropriate subsidies to manufacturers of these packaging materials and to express delivery companies. They should also impose maximum price limits on such materials and introduce tax adjustments to drive non-green packaging materials out of the market. In addition, the public is encouraged to actively use secondary recycled boxes when sending parcels to reduce packaging waste. Users are also encouraged to drop packaging materials into recycling bins after unpacking at service points, and to use previously used packaging materials the next time they send or collect parcels. Circular use can reduce total consumption across society, help achieve the 'dual carbon goals' on schedule and advance the building of a Beautiful China.

On the new journey of the new era, only by fully, accurately and comprehensively implementing the new development philosophy and accelerating the construction of a new development pattern can high-quality development be promoted. Reducing and greening express packaging is the general trend and an imperative. At the same time, green governance of express packaging is a systematic project involving packaging production, use and recycling, and closely connected with merchants, express delivery companies and consumers across the entire chain. The whole society is expected to act actively, starting from ourselves and from now, to truly make express packaging 'slimmer' and 'greener,' achieve a win-win of convenient life and low-carbon environmental protection, and contribute to a better tomorrow and a Beautiful China.

—This article is reprinted from China Packaging Network (pack.cn). Original link: http://news.pack.cn/show-379386.html