Manufacturers Embracing Growing Green Packaging Trend

It seems Frito-Lay is about to join the ever increasing number of manufacturers who are embracing the growing trend towards green packaging.

According to an article in USA Today, the Frito-Lay company is getting in on the growing trend of green packaging. They plan to release the world's first compostable chip bag on Earth Day 2010. The environmentally friendly bag will be used on their SunChips product, which is already promoted as being a healthier snacking option to other snack chips on the market.

According to the piece in USA Today, Gannon Jones says that the one thing most consumers say they would like to change about a product is the packaging when the subject of the environment comes into play. Mr. Jones is the VP of marketing for Frito-Lay North America.

According to a survey by the Hartman Group, more and more consumers are aware of packaging waste in the products they buy. The study revealed the majority of consumers said the most sustainable packaging would be no packaging at all. But if the product needs a package then the materials should be minimal, recyclable, reusable, biodegradable, or compostable.

It seems that companies other than just Frito-Lay are taking note and are putting more focus on earth-friendly packaging.

Another company who is reworking their packaging to be more eco-friendly is Kraft foods. They are reducing the amount of plastic used in their salad dressing bottles and cutting down on the amount of cardboard used to package cold cuts and deli items.

InfoWorld reported that Dell is working to reduce 20 million pounds of packaging over the next four years. They plan to reduce packaging materials for their computer, and strive to have the packaging materials they do use be made of recyclable components.

ENSO bottles is ramping up their marketing efforts to make consumers aware of their biodegradable PET plastic bottles. The PET bottles are commonly used to package cosmetics and personal products. Their biodegradable PET bottles have been on the market for several years but the company is now put an emphasis on the fact that their new range is 100 percent biodegradable and recyclable.

KFC is switching from cardboard to recyclable and biodegradable paper wrapping for some of their products.

Macy's department stores announced it will begin using recycled paper shopping bags at their stores and biodegradable packaging for online shipments.

Nordstrom switched to fully recyclable shopping bags, gift boxes, and reusable shopping totes.

Hormel switched to an earth-friendly packaging option for their "Natural Choice" line of deli meat. It comes packaged in a brown paperboard package with a sealed plastic inner lining to hold the meat.

The Twinings company is now packaging it's Everyday tea products in NatureFlex. NatureFlex is a biodegradable film made from renewable wood pulp.

Lionsgate film studio will start packaging many of their DVD's in environmentally-friendly trays made from 100 percent recycled materials.

The jury is still out on whether or not consumers will be more loyal to a brand or company who strives to be more earth-friendly in their packaging, but it seems that manufacturers are willing to take that chance as they embrace the growing trend of green packaging.

Sources: news.thomasnet.com, usatoday.com, infoworld.com, hartman-group.com, cosmeticdesign.com, environmentalleader.com