For a purchasing professional, there are many good reasons to visit and use our new and unique eco friendly packaging site but based on initial feedback, most fall into these two broad categories:

Green Packaging Group.com will save you, the B2B buyer, time and money.

You can search through the many “green” websites offering everything from soy candles to organic cotton baby diapers, but packaging is all the five charter companies do and feature on the site. Five distinct vendors at one site, with products listed in an easily sorted format. You will also find an interesting and valuable new connection and link in the section we call “additional green resources and products.” But the primary focus of our site is green packaging, and we offer it in more forms than many people realize are available.

Most purchasing professionals we know these days are short handed, so being able to find the green packaging product you need, without having to weed through pages of Google results can save you a lot of time. Packaging is a broad industry, and from our home page and throughout, our site is designed to get to what you need quickly. On www.greenpackaginggroup.com, you are only a click away from the appropriate and best vendor.

The other thing you will find at Green Packaging Group.com is guidance and “how to” advice, written by experienced industry experts with a proven record of showing clients how to use less and greener products. Chances are we have already worked with hundreds if not thousands of packaging applications similar to yours, so we can help you avoid a costly mistake with personal consultation or one of our informative, related blog posts. Also, don’t be surprised if someone at Nashville Wraps suggests Salazar Packaging or someone at Eco Bags directs you to Distant Village. We will not hesitate to refer you to a different participating company if it is the right thing to do.

Green Packaging Group.com will help you save the planet.

Green typically saves money by reducing waste and your carbon footprint. Whether you believe in global warming, climate change, or neither, most everyone agrees we all have to minimize the amount of packaging we use for the economics as well as the appearance.

Even in the down economy, one of the few market segments that has shown continuous growth is green because more and more customers see the need to change old, wasteful and careless habits. If you sell one of the many new, green products available today, you will send an eco consistent message by utilizing the green packaging vendors we have united for your benefit and that of the earth in bad need of repair.

Please let us know how we can help you save some money, time and a planet.

Joe Angel, Vice President and Publisher of Packaging World, was closely involved with PACK EXPO 2008. Here is what he had to say about the show, from a sustainable packaging perspective.

How did PACK EXPO turn out versus your expectations? Do you think this year’s show was a success?

Given today’s economic downturn, I was pleasantly surprised at the attendance of the show. While PACK EXPO was down in attendance as expected, it seemed that overall the exhibitors expressed satisfaction at the quality of leads they received. I had the opportunity to talk with with several CPG companies at the show, and there continue to be significant projects in play. Smart companies cannot afford to be stagnant and must invest in R&D. That said, CPG’s are putting a growing spotlight on operational efficiency: total cost of ownership and OEE are more critical than ever with their machinery purchases. Smarter packaging automation and smaller footprints (not just carbon) ruled the show. On the materials side, some interesting new packages, many will be profiled in a follow up report from PTIS and Packaging World, “Top Trends and Insights at PACK EXPO 2008″ (our report can be ordered here). (more…)

From Eco Ed and everyone at Salazar Packaging

Merry Christmas!

(Cartoon by Dennis Salazar and Brad Shorr, from the December 2008 issue of Packaging World magazine.)

Our marketing director, Brad Shorr, and I are very different in many ways but one thing we have in common is a good appreciation of humor. With all the confusion, contradictions and misinformation in sustainable packaging, it is not always easy to find the humor in it but we work at it.

With the help of a very talented illustrator, Mark Hill, Brad and I created “Eco Ed”, a cartoon series about the guy we can all relate to, who wants to do the right thing for the environment but is often not sure what the right thing is. We showed the concept to Joe Angel of Summit Publishing and he immediately decided he wanted to make it a regular feature in their Packaging World magazine, beginning last April. (more…)

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. (more…)