Meeting the Sustainability Challenge Without Compromising Barrier Performance

By Jim Lush & Dante Ferrari, Celplast Metallized Products Ltd. Article for PFFC, October 31, 2008.

It is clear by now that retailers are the main drivers of the sustainable packaging movement, and they have put their money where their mouths are. Wal-Mart, Tesco and many others have developed comprehensive sustainability programs, including sophisticated measurement tools and hard targets. The second thing that has become clear is that economics drive sustainability, not vice-versa. Sustainability programs have come to encompass sustaining the economics of the packaging as well as sustaining the environment, which means the most successful offerings will improve the bottom line as well.

Consumers and governments continue to apply pressure as well, as they become increasingly green conscious and energy policy has become a major political issue. The converting industry and CPG's are critical to sustainability's success, and they have both stepped up to develop sustainable solutions for retailers. The movement has high visibility at trade shows, sustainability-related symposia & conferences and industry sustainability groups. Celplast has investigated several sustainability solutions applicable to barrier films.

The full technical paper, "The Sustainability Challenge While Achieving Barrier Performance," is available as a download on Celplast's website.