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The business community is wary of consumer fads, and well it should be. We consumers, after all, are notoriously fickle. I’ve got ties I wore proudly five years ago that look ridiculous today, and I’ll bet you have more than a few fashion skeletons in your closet as well.

Now, some businesses view sustainability and sustainable packaging as the latest industrial version of the leisure suit, but I believe these issues are not trends at all, but represent a very long term change in the market’s values and priorities. Here’s why. Read the rest of this entry »

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PACK EXPO will be taking place at McCormick Place in Chicago November 9-13. Sustainable packaging will be high on the list of feature themes.

Sustainability is a fitting theme for Chicago, a city which, thanks to Mayor Daley’s leadership, has been extremely active in promoting green, eco-friendly living. For example, The Green Bungalow Initiative was instituted to make existing homes more eco friendly. Chicago is planning an ambitious new harborside green space, to go along with our well known green roof program.

Green Chicago Hotels
The Green Hotels Association lists four member hotels in Chicago proper. They are –

• The Peninusla
• City Suites Hotel
• Majestic Hotel
• The Willows Hotel

The Peninsula is close to the convention action. The other choices are further out but in very interesting neighborhoods. Rezhub ranks a few other Chicago hotels for green, including some in close proximity to McCormick Place. Read the rest of this entry »

In the ever crowded markets we all work to serve we are often challenged with trying to stand out from our competition, while simultaneously working to create a greener, more Eco friendly image by delivering a more sustainable package to our customers.  Oh yes, we would also like to reduce or at least maintain our costs while doing it. Is this an impossible, contradictory combination of goals?

I really don’t believe so but to accomplish all three objectives, we have to make some well informed decisions and when we do, we are often surprised to find out the way is much easier than we thought. One simple way of answering all three of the above challenges is to utilize custom printed, water activated, gummed tape to seal the boxes we ship out to our customers and prospects. Read the rest of this entry »

Some types of secondary packaging material are far worse for the environment than others. One of the worst, in our opinion, is the old standby for void fill, polystyrene loose fill. Folks who use this material because of its (perceived) low cost and (real) speed, are, well … ecoblivious.

Polystyrene is recyclable, but not easily so. The material is extremely lightweight and therefore expensive to ship to recycling centers, which are often a long distance away. While associated transportation costs have always been high, the economics are now even worse due to the rapid run up in fuel costs. Read the rest of this entry »

PACK EXPO International 2008 will be November 9-13, at McCormick Place in Chicago. We recently asked Joe Angel, Vice President and Publisher of Packaging World, about the show, especially in terms of sustainable packaging. This year’s show promises to be as good as ever, with green packaging perhaps topping the list as a key theme.

How is Pack Expo shaping up in terms of exhibitors and attendance?
From what I hear from PMMI, they are ahead of 2006 PEI pre-registrations. This is a good sign, particularly with the economy the way it is now. Bu it’s also a function of more total internet registrations, so only time will tell. The one consistent take-away I hear when speaking with consumer packaged goods companies (CPG’s) is that they feel they cannot afford to significantly reduce R&D…developing new or improved products, thus new packaging. PACK EXPO is a great place to see a lot of packaging ideas. While it is no secret companies are sending less people to events these days, the key people still attend and those that cannot attend will send someone or a buying team to the show or conference. Read the rest of this entry »

As consumers and people concerned with the environmental waste problem, secondary packaging should matter to all of us but I believe it is especially important for every traditional or e-commerce retailer of green products, to understand why it is important to them.

During a recent presentation to some new e-commerce green store owners, I offered this list of reasons why: Read the rest of this entry »

I recently met with a large, very eco minded client and I brought up our Globe Guard 100% recycled (PCW) corrugated boxes. She became very interested and indicated she had some doubts about the boxes her current supplier was delivering to her company. The boxes were being touted as “up to 50% recycled content”. We agreed that phrase was carefully crafted for maximum flexibility and minimal responsibility. That specific claim really guaranteed nothing in terms of quantity of recycled content and also did not provide any indication of what type quality of waste is being used to make her boxes.

Not All Sustainable Packaging Is Created Equal

This is not an isolated case. Now that the world is going green, suppliers of packaging products are doing everything they can to put an acceptable if not deceptive green spin on their current products. Being in the business I tend to notice these things and have seen corrugated boxes with large logos printed on them that say something like: “100% recyclable” Don’t most people know that all corrugated is 100% recyclable? Is this a statement that is provide to remind the customer of the box’s recyclability? Or is it intentionally deceptive because many people assume that “recyclable” and “recycled” are interchangeable terms? I can tell you that numerous times, I have met customers who thought their boxes were made of recycled content and were not. Read the rest of this entry »

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A big carbon footprint is an excellent reason to find a new inner packaging material, but not one that arouses passion in most of us. But $5 per gallon gasoline gets everyone’s juices flowing (no pun intended), and that’s another reason - perhaps the most compelling reason - why polystyrene packing peanuts are the wrong void fill material for 2008 and beyond.

Polystyrene packing peanuts are expensive to ship — in fact, considerably more expensive to ship than just about any alternative product on the market.

Peanuts are extremely bulky and lightweight, so freight carriers charge a premium to tote them around. I checked freights cost to ship 5 - 20 cubic foot bags, and the quotes ranged from $110 to $175. Whew! Freight surcharges are a healthy portion of the total, but those aren’t going away any time soon. Want to get a freight estimate for yourself? Use this Roadway freight calculator. Class is 250. Figure 4-5 lbs. per 20 cubic foot bag. You’ll be astounded. Read the rest of this entry »

This blog was created to bring new products to the attention of our readers, whether they are provided by us or not. We welcome companies with new green packaging products to let us know and even if we are not able to help take them to market, we are more than willing to share the news and information with our readers.

100% Recycled Content Air Pillow Void Fill

We are very proud to announce the introduction of Globe Guard™ Inflatable Air Pillows, void fill air pillows made of 100% recycled material. With the help of Automated Packaging Systems Inc., the undisputed leader in the area of plastic bags and bag sealing equipment, we now offer a product with all of the functional benefits of an inflatable product for you and the sustainable packaging advantages your eco conscious customers demand. Read the rest of this entry »

Our blog promised interviews with “difference makers” in sustainable packaging and I can think of few who have had more widespread positive impact than Rider Thompson. He has posted several of our articles on his Sustainable is Good and written articles about us, so now it is my extreme pleasure to now be able to interview him and share his work with our many friends and customers.

DS: Rider, can you tell our readers how you first became involved in this area and what prompted you to start your first blog?
RT: The idea to start Sustainable is Good actually came about as a combination of a number of my interests. I’ve always been concerned and interested in environmental issues – things like consumption and waste, use of resources etc. I come from a background with many ties to advertising and design so I’ve been exposed to that piece – Sustainable is Good is a combination of my interests all focused on a topic that brings them together – packaging. Nowhere do the worlds of conservation, design waste and consumption come together better than packaging. Packaging is a tremendous source of waste just look at your weekly trash to prove that point most of it is packaging of one sort or another. I think packaging is an area where companies/manufacturers, environmental advocates, consumers and government are beginning to come to together and this will continue in the years to come. Plus packaging is fascinating it plays such a significant role in marketing and a consumer’s decision to make a purchase. Today with an increasingly larger group of consumers factoring sustainability into their buying decisions – packaging is at the forefront and is one of the main areas we’ll see these issues play out. Read the rest of this entry »