Sustainability is the top challenge facing the packaging industry today. Reducing the environmental footprint is a fundamental ethical and sanctioned responsibility.

Of course, the challenge with improved sustainability is weighing it against cost.

Packaging & Sustainability

Nearly 40% of respondents identified sustainability issues as the top challenge facing the packaging industry, according to DuPont’s global survey. In fact, the packaging industry is the leading source of plastic waste according to OurWorldinData.orgBut meeting sustainability isn’t a black and white strategy; you can’t just wave a sustainability wand at something and all of a sudden your packaging operations are sustainable.

Meeting sustainability challenges requires multiple strategies. And these strategies work best when implemented in conjunction with one another.

Sixty-five percent of consumer packaged goods companies and packaging converters surveyed value recyclability design. Meanwhile, 57% focus on weight reduction, 41% gear efforts on renewable packaging materials and 25% are focused on compostable materials.

But all these advances cost money. Aside from the cost of day-to-day operations, the cost of upgrades and improvements aren’t free. But they are necessary to not only run a tighter, more eco-friendly ship but also to compete on a global scale. This is why cost is also among the most pressing challenges in the industry today.

Low-Cost Sustainable Packaging

The same DuPont survey of consumer packaged goods companies and packaging converters showed cost issues came in second to sustainability. Of the 500 packaging professionals around the world, 33% indicated cost issues were their top challenge.

The cost of upgrading for increased sustainability could be a costly investment, but it is always one that will pay off. In fact, cost savings is a top reason to reduce waste and embrace source reduction, the two-fold benefits of money-saving green-methods. 

An eco-friendly shift creates cost benefits at each level of the supply chain, with fewer materials for lower spending on package components. Common sense dictates this will yield lighter packaging, thus reducing shipping and freight costs. These are long term returns on the initial investment in your shipping operations but will help you quickly realize ROI. 

Ecology for Business & Earth

Ecological measures make more sense not only from an operations standpoint but also from a regulation standpoint. Because not only has the global environment been inundated with plastic, the government is taking measures to ensure companies are doing their part to help reduce it. These measures come in the form of both incentives (tax breaks and credits) and punitive means (costly fines and regulation).  

If you haven’t already, do yourself and your operations a favor with more ecological, economical shipping operations.

Companies such as ShipTime not only aggregate data to find you the best shipping rates available, ecologically. Working with the most accredited shipping providers, they also help you take the hassle out of your shipment operations with customer-centric services.

Sourcing the best possible shipping rates, ShipTime provides all relevant shipping information on one screen. The ShipTime dashboard speeds your shipping quote with predefined box sizes.

The ShipTime dashboard solution also provides predefined incentive rewards and the “My Pickups” functionality, allowing you to see scheduled pickups and times. They cover all your bases when it comes to efficient tracking and delivery.

Learn more here.