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Reusable Packaging Options for 2012

Innovative Products like the Globe Guard Reusable Box Sealer Can Help Companies Reduce Waste and REUSE

Reusable packaging represents the ultimate in sustainable packaging.  Developing packaging that is truly reusable is something we should all be striving for when we're developing and conceptualizing new packaging solutions.

Reusable packaging is nothing new to Dennis Salazar President of Salazar Packaging and a long time SISG contributor.  Dennis has been focused on producing reusable packaging options for his clients for several years now and launched Reusable Packaging Options to help clients incorporate affordable reusable packaging into their businesses.

To Dennis reusable packaging isn't just about the packaging used to ship products to customers.  Dennis and his company are focused on helping companies reuse corrugated and other materials throughout the entire process of product development to shipment to the customer. 

One innovative product is the Globe Guard Reusable Box Sealer.  The Reusable Box Sealer is designed to help companies reduce packaging waste during testing, product development, shipping preparation and other applications.  The Box Sealer does not require the use of any destructive or wasteful tape or glues and allows a box to be sealed and reopened repeatedly until ready for shipment.  The benefits of this creative product are numerous and allow for significant reduction in corrugated waste.

As we're about enter 2012 companies are looking for ways to reduce costs and eliminate waste more than ever.  To Dennis this represents a perfect opportunity to focus on reusable packaging options. 

"As companies continue their efforts to reduce cost and their carbon footprint in 2012, and assuming they have already reduced their packaging as much as possible and they have utilized high recycled content/recyclable packaging wherever possible, it stands to reason that reusability might be the best option left to deliver meaningful, positive green results," said Dennis.

Conscious Box Lets Consumers Try Variety of Green Products

Conscious Box is a new concept in the green marketplace.  Consumers subscribe and each month receive a box of eco-friendly and natural products.  The products have all been carefully screened and reviewed by the staff at Conscious Box before being included.  Companies cannot buy their way into having their products included in the box.

Why is this an interesting idea?  Well I think most consumers who are looking for green or more eco-friendly products will appreciate being able to try products before committing to buy a larger size version. 

With green products there is constant change in the marketplace with new products popping up and other ones failing.  The Conscious Box allows a consumer to try a number of products in small quantities before buying them at the store. 

Lets face it eco-friendly products are expensive and some of them don't work out as we had hoped.  Also many green consumers are highly concerned about waste if a product doesn't work out or isn't something they like.  Conscious Box allows the consumer to try products.

Another interesting feature of the Conscious Box is its packaging.  The makers of Conscious Box placed a high level of importance on making the box and the shipping container as green as possible.  They worked with Salazar Packaging in Chicago to develop the ideal packaging solution for their product. 

Dennis Salazar, president of Salazar Packaging and a SISG contributor said the box and shipper are made from 100% recycled corrugated content produced by wind power.  He told SISG the Conscious Box team was adamant about using the greenest possible packaging.

Read more about the packaging for Conscious Box at Inside Sustainable Packaging

A Good Book for the Morning After Earth Day

BY DENNIS SALAZAR

Earth Day has always reminded me of New Years because each marks a passage of time and both generously provide us with a fresh start and clean slate.  The resolutions abound as we commit to shedding old bad habits and develop a long list of good, positive actions we plan to initiate or do even better in the year ahead.

As someone who has broken more than his share of New Years’ resolutions, I can tell you my failures have never been due to a lack of good intentions, but rather the tremendous amount of work and in some cases, sacrifice most meaningful resolutions require. I have discovered the tough way, New Years Eve is all about intentions but New Years Day is about follow through.

The importance of Green Influencers

Since the last Earth Day I have been fortunate to meet a number of people involved in sustainability, in one way or another. They range from scientists working on the next breakthrough in renewable fuels to people who earn a living by sorting through the waste of others in an effort to save and reuse our precious resources.

I have also come to realize that some people are hands on; “doers” and others are blessed in a far different but equally important way in that they are drivers or influencers of the green movement. People who, through their work and effort, have the opportunity and responsibility to impact many more lives than those they may personally touch on a face to face basis. One of the potentially most influential people I have met this last year is Graciela Tiscareno- Sato, the author of a soon to be published book titled Latinnovating: Green American Jobs and the Latinos Creating Them.

Difference Makers in Sustainability

Grace’s book is probably the first of its type to recognize the importance of Latino’s in the green movement both as willing participants but also as leaders and innovators. Certainly any large urban area demographics study or population projection will quickly confirm why Latino “buy in” to sustainability is so important. However, Grace profiles ten Latino owned companies and organizations that are leaders in their respective fields and are creating jobs at a time when we most need them.

In the interest of full disclosure I must gratefully acknowledge that one chapter of this book is focused on our company and the work we do, but others include:

• Rosamaria Caballero-Stafford, cofounder of Green Irene in NYC, NY
• Robert  Zardenata, Executive Director of La Causa in East LA, CA
• Sandra Artalejo, designer and owner of Sola Studios in Dallas, TX
• Luis Rojas, president and founder of Evergreen Energy Solutions
• Carmen Rad, President and co-founder – CR&A Custom Printing in LA, CA

Many Hands Make Light Work

Grace’s book proudly embraces our heritage and our past but more importantly looks into the future, focusing on the role all of our children must play in the necessary worldwide environmental solution.

I have gotten to know Grace over the course of the last year and I deeply respect her commitment to the green cause as she tirelessly races around the country, meeting and promoting her labor of love. The positive impact she potentially has goes far beyond Latinos, business, or even Latinos in business, because it reminds us that we all have something to contribute and how we have an obligation to do so.

It is great reading for Earth Day but especially for the day after when many of us have a difficult time resisting the inclination to revert back to old habits. Regardless of what our purpose is within the green community, we can all use some inspiration and examples of people for who sustainability is not a one day, yearly event.       

Dennis Salazar is the president of Salazar Packaging, Inc., a certified MBE (Minority Business Enterprise) company specializing in packaging products, equipment and solutions. With over thirty years in the packaging industry, he is known for his tongue in cheek sense of humor as well as his sustainable packaging passion and expertise.   

To contact Dennis, please visit his web site: www.salazarpackaging.com

Also be sure to check out his blog Inside Sustainable Packaging

The 2010 Globe Guard Raspberry Awards

The 2010 Globe Guard “Raspberry” Awards

BY DENNIS SALAZAR

At the end of the year we like to review the progress or in many cases, the lack of progress specific industries have made in terms of packaging sustainability during the previous twelve months. These industries are chosen because they often either promote themselves as being green or they target and sell into the green market.

In some cases there may be an outstanding company or two within the industry that is sincerely attempting to lead their specific market segment toward sustainable packaging. However for the most part, the industry as a whole has managed to allow another year to slip away without making significant change or contribution.

With this introduction and explanation, it is our displeasure, if not obligation to announce the following industries that are in our opinion, deserving of this dubious honor:

The Laundry Detergent Industry

It is ironic but some of the companies with the greenest sounding names are still promoting the largest bottles and packaging. The detergent aisle of any retailer continues to be much larger than it really needs to be because most manufacturers refuse to change and down size into concentrated versions of their product. They may believe we consumers are dumb enough to believe oversized packaging represents value or perhaps they simply don’t want us to know that we are paying twenty dollars for a couple of ounces of active ingredients and the rest is all water. Companies like Method Home have done an excellent job of downsizing their packaging while most others continue to talk green but deliver waste.  

The Recycled Ink and Toner Industry

This is a fast growing market as people strive to reduce costs and attempt to do the right thing for the environment. What we have noticed is the number of companies that are now in this business and how few of them are eco consistent in terms of packaging. In many cases the corrugated packaging is white, printed in multiple colors with eco unfriendly coatings and laminates. All designed to catch the eye but difficult or in some cases impossible to recycle. I was recently shopping at a large office products retailer and ironically the only package that really stood out in the ink cartridge aisle was Dell in their plain brown corrugated box with simple black graphics.  

The Children’s Toy Industry

The toy industry almost did not make the list but a recent week at Disney World made them a must inclusion. There is no better place to be on a vacation with kids and no company does a better job of marketing than Disney but until our recent trip there, I did not realize how many of the toys they promote to kids are made in China. In most cases they are completely over packaged, for display and undoubtedly for security reasons, the materials are not eco friendly (a lot of PVC pouches and clamshells) and I saw very few recycling logos or disposal instructions. Even though I have used Disney as an example, this industry runs rampant with irresponsible packaging and is quite deserving of this negative recognition.

More Bad and Some Good

You can always count on certain industries and groups to be included in a list of bad packaging or bad packaging use. Perennial winners (losers) are:

• The reusable bag industry – even ink loaded with lead did not slow down this environmental culprit of an industry. Most reusable bags are bad and no one seems to care.
• United States Postal Service – this darling of the green movement just a few short years ago continues to rest on their FSC laurels and has grown into one of the most packaging wasteful organizations around while losing billions of dollars.

A few industries that are making a real, green effort:

• The snack food industry – Even though in most cases the industry is not creating health foods, there is a legitimate effort to make their packaging healthier for our planet. We applaud Pepsi and their much maligned Sun Chips bag. It is only through experimentation and innovation that solid solutions will be found and their fearless approach to sustainability should be commended.
• The bottled water industry – only plastic shopping bags receive more negative press than these people and let’s face it, in the past, most of it was deserved. However, as much as we all hate to buy and drink bottled water, in some situations it is the best or perhaps even the only option. The bottles are thinner and the caps are smaller so we can see a lot less plastic is being used. The industry is also moving towards bio plastics which may be the best long term solution for an industry the green world loves to hate.  

Overall 2010 was a good year filled with many opportunities as well as challenges. The smart, committed companies and industries did not lose their green focus and not surprisingly, most of them enjoyed very profitable and successful years.

Here’s hoping you, your company and your industries appear on someone’s good list at the end of 2011.   

Dennis Salazar is the president of Salazar Packaging, Inc., a certified MBE (Minority Business Enterprise) company specializing in packaging products, equipment and solutions. With over thirty years in the packaging industry, he is known for his tongue in cheek sense of humor as well as his sustainable packaging passion and expertise.   

To contact Dennis, please visit his web site: www.salazarpackaging.com

Also be sure to check out his blog Inside Sustainable Packaging

Greener Packaging Group Bridges Gap Between Green Packaging Suppilers and Business Owners

Navigating the numerous eco-friendly packaging choices can be completely overwhelming for a business owner looking to green their packaging.

Fortunately there is a new site Greener Packging Group where green packaging industry leaders come together offering information and resources to anyone looking for more sustainable packaging options.

The site launched in August and is a partnership between five suppliers including Salazar Packaging, the Chicago area company of green packaging expert and Greener Packaging Group founder Dennis Salazar. 

His firm is joined by Distant Village Packaging, Nashville Wraps, Eco-Bag Products, Inc., and Globe Guard Products. Through these leading packaging companies, buyers can find packaging products that are fully vetted and more sustainable.

“B2B companies seeking more environmentally-friendly solutions for retail and industrial packaging now have access to an essential resource,” said Salazar.

“Our B2B sustainable packaging directory allows B2B buyers, engineers and operations personnel to find multiple high-quality suppliers all under one roof – saving the time, money and frustration that come along with searching for truly eco-friendly packaging products.”

The on line directory provides easy navigation, with such categories as bags, baskets and containers, boxes, filler and cushioning, films and wraps, stationery, mailers and envelopes, and more. The Green Packaging Group blog introduces visitors to the latest in sustainable packaging solutions and discusses new, simple and effective approaches to eco-friendly packaging.

After launching the site Salazar told SISG, "Traffic on the site has been brisk and we are thrilled with the initial results."

He said visitors to the site are pleased to see companies working together and providing the resource.  According to Salazar, many visitors to the site are surprised at the sheer number of green packaging products and options that exist. 

Visitors have also found the blog on GPG to be very useful with posts on specific areas of interest to those considering green packaging options.

I've always found the information Dennis posts to be both insightful and valuable especially given the large volume of options available to someone considering greener packaging.  Dennis especially recognizes the challenges faced by small business owners who may not have the volume needed to work with the larger eco-packaging companies but still want to green their packaging.

Green Packaging Group provides a number of important resources in one place and I think it will become a useful go to source for green packaging options.

 

 

Stonyfield Partners with Preserve on Single Serve Container Promotion; Ships in Globe Guard Recycled Boxes

Stonyfield Farms recently held a promotion for its customers encouraging the purchase of its larger one quart containers of yogurt. 

The popular maker of natural and organic yogurts teamed with its primary recycling partner MA-based Preserve to create a reusable single serve 8 oz container so its customers could buy the larger sized yogurt but still take smaller containers with them where ever they need to go.

Customers who sent in four foil lids from one quart Stonyfield yogurts through December will receive the new stylish blue 8 oz Preserve reusable container. 

"When consumers buy our quarts instead of single-serving cups, they pay less for their yogurt, but we know that a quart is not as convenient as single-serving cups for on the go consumption,” says Stonyfield President Gary HIrshberg.

“The reusable yogurt cup gives our quart buyers the convenience of the Stonyfield 6 oz cups by providing a way to create easily transportable single servings for anywhere, anytime."

Stonyfield has been working with Preserve (formerly Recycline) since 2000.  Preserve uses innovative methods to turn used materials made from #5 plastic (including used Stonyfield yogurt cups) into stylish, useful household products like toothbrushes, colanders, cutting boards and tableware. Preserve products are 100% recycled and recyclable too.

Stonyfield is currently in the process of shipping out the Preserve containers to their customers. 

In order to help reduce the impact of shipping the containers, Stonyfield used custom Globe Guard 100% Post-consumer recycled boxes. 

Globe Guard boxes are produced by Chicago area Salazar Packaging, a leader in the development of more sustainable packaging solutions for both large and small companies. 

Salazar Packaging produced a custom 4" cube box for Stonyfield Farms allowing the reusable container to be shipped directly to their customers.

The whole process from the development of the idea to offer Stonyfield customers a single serve reusable Preserve container to the distribution of the cups in the special Globe Guard boxes is a perfect example of a partnership among three companies who have been committed to making better more sustainable products with minimal environmental impact.  

Is the United States Postal Service Coasting on Green?

BY DENNIS SALAZAR

A good friend of mine, who is very much in tune with the national sustainability scene, recently, shared his belief that many companies and organizations who helped lead us into sustainability were now sitting back and resting on their laurels. Almost as if they had “been there and done that” or as one of our most entertaining politicians in recent memory, put it – “mission accomplished”.

We have the distinct privilege of working with some of the most progressive and committed companies who see “going green” as a never ending process so initially I did not share my friend’s opinion. However, as I took a closer look at some of the companies and organizations who received the great PR and headlines just a year or two ago, many are definitely green coasting. The one that stands out in an increasingly crowded field is our own United States Postal Service.

FSC and C2C are NOT Certificates of Completion

Two years ago, at the end of 2007 USPS was getting a lot of accolades for their FSC and Cradle to Cradle certifications and quite frankly, they deserved the applause and appreciation of the green community.  Both certifications are difficult to obtain, and undoubtedly USPS spent considerable time and resources securing two of the foremost certifications available, at that time. 

FSC (Forest Stewardship Council) certification on a product (in this case USPS corrugated boxes) confirms that the origin can be traced back through proper “chain of custody” practices, all the way to the forest that grew the tree, that the box was made from. C2C (Cradle to Cradle) certification applies to other USPS packaging products and is indeed a prestigious accomplishment. It certifies that a product is made using minimal energy, leaves a minimal carbon footprint, etc. Simply put, it tracks what a product was, how it is made and where/how it will wind up. I think we can agree, that is all pretty important stuff.

SISG’s Rider Thompson wrote and posted an excellent article back on December 13, 2007 detailing what these certifications mean and the process involved in earning them so I will not attempt to rewrite what has already been well documented. And I certainly don’t want to minimize these sustainability accomplishments; however, I do need to point out what these two certifications are not. They are NOT certifying the way the products are specified or used by the USPS or their customers.

These certifications are also not recent. Memo from Earth to the USPS: what have you done for me lately?

“We Deliver” Waste

I think it is wonderful that a person who occasionally ships a package can go to the local post office or hop on line, and order the packaging materials they need, for free. I don’t even have a problem with the professional E-Bay merchants and other large volume mailers using this no cost service to ship out dozens, hundreds, or even thousands of packages per week.

Even though I sell packaging materials, the secondary packaging market is large enough that I don’t see this USPS customer perk as a major threat to my livelihood. My problems with this program are green focused and are twofold:

• Since the boxes are free, I often see people “loading up” and the USPS web site encourages this by listing a maximum of 100 boxes on most items. Since no one monitors this usage, like any other government managed program, it has to be riddled with waste and I have to wonder how many boxes wind up never being used for their intended purpose. I can’t wait to see what the federal government is able to do for us on health insurance.
• This practice along with their “flat rate” service pricing discourages “right sizing” a shipping container to the product being shipped as I and any other packaging professional would recommend. How much air and void fill material is filling trucks and being shipped in their over sized containers? We may never know but let’s agree it is not an environmentally responsible way to ship anything.

Board Content versus Box Content

If what product goes into a USPS box is a potential problem, certainly so is what goes into the board that is used to make the box. Thanks to the USPS white exterior on their boxes, what is going into the USPS board is at least 30% virgin content, hence the FSC certification. Anyone who knows me knows I am a major proponent of recycling packaging waste and using that waste to make new packaging materials. I also believe that the largest shippers in the world such as e-commerce companies and catalog houses as well as the USPS have an obligation to help create a market for recycled content packaging by using it, not just creating the packaging waste.

USPS and the Two R’s of Sustainability

Most green minded companies live by three R’s which are Recycling, Reducing and Reusing. With their policies and programs it is obvious that the USPS is not doing as a good of a job as possible of reducing usage or recycled content  but they are darn adamant about not supporting the third “R” we call reusing.

USPS boxes are well built and sturdy and can often times be used again but USPS policy prohibits the re-use of any of their shipping boxes. Why? I have no idea but you can ask Gary Adler of Castle Rock, Colorado who last year found himself in trouble with USPS for reusing a Priority Mail box. It is against USPS rules to even reuse containers that are turned inside out or used for internal packaging purposes. Scan the internet and you will find many incidents where customers unintentionally violated USPS and federal regulations by doing what we should all be doing, and that is reusing every box and container we possibly can.

You would think that a service provider expected to lose over three billion dollars in 2009 would be interested in minimizing wasted packaging, if not for green’s sake, for economic good sense but let’s keep logic out of the process. After all, we live in an era of government bail outs and the second largest employer in the country (second only to Wal-Mart) will undoubtedly soon have their hand out to get their fair share of our dwindling tax dollars. And of course, there is always another postage rate hike around the corner to relieve their financial woes, at least temporarily.

The only thing more disappointing is all of those consumers who really think those USPS boxes are free.

Dennis Salazar is the president of Salazar Packaging, Inc., a certified MBE (Minority Business Enterprise) company specializing in packaging products, equipment and solutions. With over thirty years in the packaging industry, he is known for his tongue in cheek sense of humor as well as his sustainable packaging passion and expertise.   

To contact Dennis, please visit his web site: www.salazarpackaging.com

 

Green Washing at a Green Conference?

BY DENNIS SALAZAR

It’s kind of like finding salmonella at a healthy food fair but it happens. Last week I attended one of the largest green conferences of its kind, completely focused on sustainability and green businesses. It was being held at The Hotel Whitcomb, one of San Francisco’s oldest and greenest hotels.

 
After arriving in my room, I glanced at the bathroom amenities shelf and saw an extra roll of tissue which is always a good thing to locate when you’re on the road. I read the label and was impressed by the product name: Renature Bathroom Tissue. “That looks like a nice green brand,” I thought when I saw the recycled logo but then noticed the problematic printing under the name: 100% recyclable.

Labeling to Inform or Misinform?

What does that mean? What is bathroom tissue that is 100% recyclable? I am not sure I even want to know but I suspect there were a number of different things they could have printed on the wrapper that would be more accurate and possibly every bit as green sounding as what they chose. Does the product contain recycled content? Perhaps, but we’ll never know for sure, I guess. Is it biodegradable? I think most tissue is designed for that. What exactly do they mean by 100% recyclable?

Is the Green Kool-Aid Glass Half full or Half Empty?

In our relationship my wife is the “glass half full” type of person it takes to offset my half empty nature. When I showed the product to her, she suggested they might be talking about the wrapper, not the product itself. “That is even worse,” I quickly retorted. “That is even more misleading!” Yes, this is the type of conversation we enjoying having which likely explains why we have few friends and usually travel alone.  Anyway, back to the tissue issue.

“Who Made This Product”

I asked myself, wondering which one of the major paper mills made this subtle but serious gaff in product identification and marketing. I expected to find the name of any one of the many major manufacturers of tissue but instead read “A Product of Advantage Marketing Associates”.

“Ahh, that explains it,” I thought as I realized the product was not being offered by anyone who necessarily knows anything about sustainability, or for that matter about tissue. One might also question whether good, basic marketing knowledge was present the day this one was raised up the flag pole for all those eager to salute.

The product is obviously a private label item which pretty much takes the real product manufacturer off the hook with regards to content or virtually anything else. It also means the marketing company can say just about anything they want to on the label.

Green Needs and Green Products

The tissue at the Hotel Whitcomb could have been supplied by a company like 7^th Generation who is a market leader in the area of sustainable household paper products. All of the major tissue paper mills also have their own “green” lines for eco minded hotels and motels.

Or better yet, they could have chosen to do business with one of the small, independent green companies who have also created green products of this type. Companies like Planet Inc. who was exhibiting at the green festival, which immediately followed the green conference. The nice lady we met at their booth proudly informed us her bath tissue is now 90% recycled content and just won an award for softness. That sounds serious about green, doesn’t it?

Too bad she was not chosen as a supplier to the hotel where the green conference was held but unfortunately these decisions are often made based on personal relationships or the lowest bidder, not the greenest company or product. Sad but true, even at a green hotel, hosting a green conference.

In the mean time, other companies continue to “cash in” on this undeniable and irreversible sustainability trend by utilizing soft pastel colors, green sounding names and eco sounding catch phrases with no real substance behind them.

Speaking of truth and accuracy in labeling, perhaps “Advantage Marketing”, would be more accurately named, “Take Advantage Marketing”. I’m sure that quip has been 100% recycled as well.

Dennis Salazar is the president of Salazar Packaging, Inc., a certified MBE (Minority Business Enterprise) company specializing in packaging products, equipment and solutions. With over thirty years in the packaging industry, he is known for his tongue in cheek sense of humor as well as his sustainable packaging passion and expertise.  Dennis is also a featured blogger at www.packagingdigest.com.

To contact Dennis, please visit his web site: www.salazarpackaging.com

 

Glass Packaging is Back, Sustainable and Drop Dead Gorgeous

BY DENNIS SALAZAR

One of the delights of being in the packaging industry for as long as I have been is witnessing the resurgence of many “old” packaging materials such as water activated paper tape, corrugated board in many new uses and on the retail packaging side, the old fashioned glass bottle or jar.

A quick peek in our refrigerator or kitchen pantry will show the variety of packaging materials that now satisfy some of the past, most common applications for glass containers. A wide range of newer packaging solutions ranging from multi-layer boxes to plastics in different grades now replace the traditional glass container for products such as milk, juice and even ketchup.

Clearly Glass Is Back in a Big Green Way

With the woes of the overall economy, precise industry numbers are difficult to obtain or compare but according to the Glass Packaging Institute, retail glass packaging is growing rapidly in terms of use and applications. It seems that the word is out that glass is pure, reusable, recyclable and very sustainable from several different perspectives.

 According their web site www.gpi.org, “recycling one glass bottle saves enough energy to power a 60-watt bulb for four hours, a computer for 30 minutes or a television for 20 minutes”. That is very neat stuff in this day and age; especially considering the relentless “anti-plastic” sentiment of the green market.

From a recycling and up cycling perspective, the new, “hot” material for green home design is counter tops manufactured from guess what? Crushed glass. You can easily see why the glass industry is growing again and why it may be one of the best “new” green packaging solutions.

The Green Packaging Bad News

With this increased use of glass, there is also an expected and proportionate rise in damage from full or partial cases of glass packaged products shipping via UPS, FedEx and USPS. Compound this with the fact that many companies now prefer glass over plastic and other non-eco friendly materials for packaging of their healthy, organic or otherwise “green” products, you can see why this is a fast growing problem. It stands to reason, the more glass we use and ship; the more likely we are to have breakage in shipment.

Sustainable packaging and Survival of the Fittest

Damage leads to unhappy customers and increased costs for everyone so it is not at all surprising to see a company like FedEx devote a large part of their website to package testing.  http://www.fedex.com/us/services/pdf/PKG_Testing_Procedures.pdf Similar information can be found at USPS and UPS’s websites but FedEx makes their information clearer and much easier to locate and use.

Regardless of whether you drop test a package seven or ten times and do it from a height of 30”, 36” or 48”, the end result is often times the same. There are many different variations of this test but you can understand why it can be brutal, especially on a glass product, improperly packaged for shipment. The glass container is vulnerable to the impact shock transferred to it from a drop and that is not a good thing.

The Green Packaging Silver Lining

From the simple perspective of a packaging sales person, especially one who focuses on green, protective secondary packaging, this should all sound like great news. More damage should lead to more packaging and cushioning materials, right?

That is correct in theory but keep in mind the same green buyer who wants glass container packaging for its eco benefits is also the same customer who is likely to demand less secondary packaging, not more. So what is a packager to do?

Green Secondary Packaging

In my opinion, there has never been a time when there has been such a wide variety of affordable, eco friendly secondary packaging products and solutions as are available today. Recycled and recyclable corrugated die cut products, biodegradable inflatable products, and even molded pulp that was once relegated to drink cup carriers are all back in a big way.

There is probably not a product that I am aware of today that cannot be shipped safely anywhere in the world with use of a blocking, bracing, cushioning or void fill material that is obviously and inarguably green. If the first concern is product protection, the close second is green perception so using products that communicate a clear and consistent green message, is more important than ever.

For most of the world drop dead gorgeous means something else but for people with glass or otherwise fragile products, it means product arriving in one piece and that is truly a beautiful thing.

Dennis Salazar is the president of Salazar Packaging, Inc., a certified MBE (Minority Business Enterprise) company specializing in packaging products, equipment and solutions. With over thirty years in the packaging industry, he is known for his tongue in cheek sense of humor as well as his sustainable packaging passion and expertise.  Dennis is also a featured blogger at www.packagingdigest.com.

To contact Dennis, please visit his web site: www.salazarpackaging.com

 

Sustainable Packaging – At What Cost?

A group I belong to recently had an interesting online debate on why sustainable packaging was "always" more expensive. The reasons and theories cited included freight and transportation costs, greedy manufacturers, a shift from some materials to others creating shortages, etc. Most of the wide variety of comments posted were accurate to some degree, but I was surprised no one mentioned the first rule of business, the one even non-business people often quote.

Sustainability and the Law of Supply and Demand

If more people were buying any specific green packaging product, more companies would manufacture it and eventually, probably sooner than later, the market price would be reduced due to increased competition. In addition, whether you are talking about tape, boxes, or void fill, short runs of a green packaging product for any manufacturer are always substantially more expensive than a long run of a similar "non-green" product because of costly changeover time and related costs. We need to understand that companies have spent decades and millions streamlining and automating their manufacturing processes to be able to produce volume efficiently. Once you realize and accept these facts, the solution is fairly obvious.

How Can Brown Boxes Turn Green?

Our company recently introduced a line of 100% recycled post consumer content corrugated boxes with the objective of making them price competitive with "standard" boxes that usually contain 25 to 35% recycled pre-consumer, in plant waste content. Our approach has been rather expensive in terms of time, initial start up costs, inventory buildup, etc., but essentially we helped design the product, enlisted the help of a visionary company to help make the product we were confident the market wanted and needed, and then took it to market. By combining volume of numerous smaller users, we were able to secure the support of a major corrugated manufacturer by providing them the volume that they need to be efficient in the production of our product. Much to our pleasant surprise, we discovered that our boxes are not necessarily much higher in price, in most cases we are within 10% of the current supplier and in some cases we are even less expensive!

Market Response

What has been fascinating to us through the launch and introduction has been the wide range of potential customer expectations and perceptions. Many of the people we speak with expect our product to be outrageously priced and they initially respond with "I want to be green but I can’t afford it". They have been convinced that green will always cost double or more than standard products and we are happy to dispel that misconception.

We have also been surprised by the number of people who believe our product should be less expensive since it is not made of virgin material. They obviously do not understand that saving consumer waste from landfills is more expensive in many ways that cutting down a tree that is genetically engineered to grow back in a relatively short five to seven years. I think we can all relate to high fuel prices and what it has done to freight and transportation costs.

The only prospects that we have not been able to help have been inquiries for highly unusual sizes, custom printed boxes in very small quantities. For all the reasons cited above, they usually discover there is little we can do to make their unique box be price competitive with standard construction, common size, stock box pricing.

Market Reaction by the Environmentally Focused

One fully committed lady told me she understood what we were attempting to do short term as well as long term and offered to help support our program during this initial costly phase. One incredibly eco minded prospect quickly stated that he could justify paying up to 50% more for our product because he was certain it would help him make his environmental message to his customers more consistent and more obvious. I instantly admired him for his environmental commitment and swore not to take advantage of his eagerness and openness. I am pleased to say our pricing was very competitive to what he had been paying to his former vendor.

Full Steam Ahead!

Despite the erratic price perceptions and inconsistent manufacturing costs, we are fully committed to bringing green products to market; in fact, we are about to roll out several new items in response to our customers’ growing sustainable packaging needs.

We are confident market pricing will eventually stabilize at very attractive and competitive levels as supply catches up with the slow but steady increase in demand. Unfortunately today’s weak economy has put the spotlight on price and to survive, companies are looking anywhere and everywhere to reduce cost but we remain optimistic. We are counting on the fact that the environment will not be where companies decide to make compromises.

Dennis Salazar is the president of Salazar Packaging, Inc., a certified MBE (Minority Business Enterprise) company specializing in packaging products, equipment and solutions. With over thirty years in the packaging industry, he is known for his tongue in cheek sense of humor as well as his sustainable packaging passion and expertise.   

To contact Dennis, please visit his web site: www.salazarpackaging.com