In this revolution against single use plastic, paper is being seen as the way forward as a sustainable replacement. The fact that paper can be recycled and not end up in landfill coupled with papers coming from regenerated sources through accreditations such FSC, paper seems the obvious alternative.
We have seen some really inspiring alternative product solutions and wanted to share some of these with you, in case you haven’t already seen these or considered them. These come from the simplest replacement of poly wraps with the comeback of the paper envelope and biodegradable plastic to the truly inspiring and innovative with the paper produced water bottle.
Many of our clients have chosen us as an environmentally conscious and sustainable print partner and due to this we are seeing many choices being made about the enclosing and mailing of products. One of our clients Neal’s Yard chose to remove plastic from its brochure mailings which used to be mailed in poly wrap single use plastic and now encloses its brochures in paper non window envelopes helped by the fact we have inkjet and digital printing facilities which mean personalised and bespoke envelope solutions can be provided.
L’oreal announced its launch of sustainable paper based bottles for new sustainable brand Seed Phytonutrients in April last year. The external shell is 100% paper-based and is recyclable and compostable.
Twosides reported last year on the Choose Water bottle, which has been developed by British scientist James Longcroft, which aims to replace plastic bottles and help save the world’s oceans from plastic waste. The outer case is made from 100% recycled sustainably sourced paper pulp, while the waterproof inner lining is made from fully biodegradable and sustainable materials. The steel cap on the bottle will also rust and fully decompose within a year whereas plastic usually takes hundreds of years to break down.
Delipac is another leader in this field with a fully sustainable innovative packaging board designed for food and drink products. It provides barriers against moisture, grease, liquid, but without laminated plastics or polymers perfect for the coffee cup market.
These are surely massive breakthroughs however time will tell if the production costs can be brought into line to make them a mainstream solution for cost conscious manufacturers.
Now awareness isn’t purely with the more environmentally conscious companies and individuals but across the board on the damage single use plastic has on our environment. Innovative solutions are coming through and so a great step towards taking a responsible approach to plastic usage.
Further reading here:
https://www.twosides.info/UK/LOreal-opts-in-for-paper-packaging
https://www.twosides.info/UK/Choose-Water-Bottle
http://theprintingreport.com/2018/04/26/can-paper-be-the-new-plastic/
https://www.printweek.com/print-week/feature/1163630/can-paper-replace-fantastic-plastic
