Sustainability and

Packaging:
a continuum
Reevaluate, innovate and protect
your brand
How brands are bringing to life
sustainable packaging solutions

by Bertrand Chovet

As brands continue to recognize It required over three years of

the positive impact that reengineering.
THE 5R’s approach
sustainability has on long-term One of the simplest approaches to
brand value, they’ve been The problem was twofold: Not reducing packaging waste is the
taking action to reduce waste. only would eliminating the 5Rs.
In the last 20 years, there’s been cluster pack put key brands like
a significant reduction in the Activia and Taillefine at risk as RETHINK
use of plastic used in packaging. the packaging protects the Analyze user behaviors and
For example, the packaging product during its transport, expectations (how they think,
used for a 1.5-liter mineral but it would impact visibility on what they need and want) to
water has been reduced by 42 the shelf. Consumer research, in deliver options about the cycle
percent. Additionally, a fact, identified a potential 20 of the product and packaging.
container of 125 gram yogurt percent drop in sales if Danone Use this research as a path for
has been reduced by 40 got rid of the packaging. all engineers, marketers, and
percent. But while this is great
designers.
news, businesses could go even And yet, for Danone, the
further. As an October 2009 positives outweighed the RE-ENGINEER
ADEME survey shows, 73 kg negatives. While the short-term Look at packaging
(13 percent) of an average 530 impact would be negative, a manufacturing, logistics, retail,
kg per capita loaded each year reduction in packaging would and user constraints, involving
on our shopping cart is secure its long-term brand both engineering and
packaging waste. Businesses value and ultimately save the marketing disciplines before
may have made strides, but company EU 2.5 million (two briefing designers.
they shouldn’t stop focusing on cents per pack) a year. Although REMOVE
the waste issue. the reengineering took three Optimize packaging layers to
years of planning and required
fulfill manufacturing, logistics,
So what are the next steps that true commitment and focus,
brands must take to reevaluate Danone can now safely say that retail and user expectations
their packaging strategy? Some it is on course to reducing its without losing the key
brands like Danone, Newton carbon footprint by 30 percent. packaging functions (which
Running, and Snyder’s are often have multiple uses).
proving that there is no one size Snyder’s of Hanover: Finding a REDUCE
fits all solution. The best partner Act to reduce packaging
strategy is one that is right for Snyder’s of Hanover wanted to material without affecting the
your brand. reduce the packaging used for product performance during its
its organic pretzels. Rather than production, transport,
Danone: Short-term risks, create something on its own,
distribution and use phases.
long-term benefits Snyder’s found support in Clear
Danone decided to get rid of its Lam Packaging, which RECYCLE
yogurt cluster packaging as specializes in creating Consider the life cycle of the
part of an initiative to reduce its packaging from renewable raw product packaging to improve
carbon footprint by 30 percent materials. how used material re-enters
by 2012. The move was more the process at the end of the
difficult than initially expected. cycle – especially from a user
point of view.
Clear Lam replaced Snyder’s lightweight and easy to break Although the bottle water
conventional petroleum-based down and recycle. market is lucrative (US $17 billion
plastics with renewable raw per year in America), it is highly
materials that are 90 percent Additionally, as the box is wasteful. It produces 38 billion
plant-based. The renewable raw produced close to the footwear units and uses approximately 1.5
materials are produced with as factory, the business has million barrels of oil to deliver
little as half the energy of the minimized its shipping carbon plastic bottles to each of us.
petroleum-based packaging. footprint. Rather than tissue Meanwhile, the plastic bottles
They also generate 52 percent paper, it also uses recycled contain the same beverage that
fewer greenhouse gas emissions cardboard inserts (scraps from most Americans can get from
in the manufacturing process. the box) to protect the shape of their kitchen sink. The Move
Additionally, the bag acts and the shoes. Collective felt there could be a
feels like a conventional bag – better way.
something that was a major The 5Rs in action, Bobble
engineering challenge. Snyder’s A great example of a brand First, the Move Collective
move represents a major that utilized the 5R approach rethought the bottled water
milestone. It is a packaging effectively is the Move Collective. market – how could it improve
solution that is positively Under its bobble water brand, the industry by using water
impacting manufacturing and the company, with the help of where it is, limiting transport,
the environment. designer Karim Rashid, came up and logistics? Once this was
with a solution to reduce bottled determined, it re-engineered by
Newton Running: Innovating water waste. observing the needs and
on its own behaviors of customers. This
Newton Running, which is resulted in the creation of
named for Sir Isaac Newton and hybridized water purifiers.
the science behind energy
conservation, has strived to Then it removed. A minimalistic,
produce shoes with minimal structural design was created
impact packaging. In Spring that conveyed what the brand is
2009, it launched a new all about: simplicity. Reduction
rectangular shoebox to was next. The Move Collective
supplement this effort. ensured that its Bobble water
could be refilled at least 300
The new shoebox, which times before changing the filter.
minimizes the energy the brand Finally, Bobble, which is made
requires for production and from recycled PET, free of BPA,
shipment, is produced from 100 Phthalates and PVC, is also 100
percent post-consumer waste percent recyclable.
©Move Collective

and uses soy-based inks and

aqueous (water-based) coating. All this, and Bobble also retails for
The new packaging is not only under US $10.
easy to store and ship, it is also

More packaging solutions

As Snyder’s partnership with Clear Lam shows, brands have more opportunities than ever to
partner with companies specializing in sustainable packaging.
One particularly appealing packaging alternative that has been garnering awards since mid-2009 is
Cubis, a patented beverage container. Cubis is targeted at the drinks industry and brings a number of
benefits to producers, distributors and consumers. Cubis does a number of things effectively:
1. It cuts costs as well as carbon emissions by utilizing space during distribution and storage more
efficiently.
2. It has a sealed off drinking spout which is ergonomically designed to ease drinking and
demonstrates a higher level of protection against contamination.
3. Easier bottle stacking increases shelf value and simplifies logistic and handling.
4. An eye-catching structural design facilitates the introduction of new beverage products to the
market.
While we’ve yet to see a brand use Cubis on the market, in the next year, expect to see some brands
adopt the packaging.
Four tips to success
As the brands above demonstrate, there are a number of routes to take to reduce packaging waste.
However, although solutions may vary from brand to to brand, the following points will be helpful to all
brands when reevaluating their packaging:

Source the impossible

Choosing ignored or rejected
materials will provide you with a
competitive advantage.

Hybridization & mix

The power of association is often a
key element of success. Mixing
needs or expectations is key to
attaining sustainability.

Start small
By experimenting on a smaller level,
you can take advantage of a quicker
return on experience, before
beginning to implement on a larger
scale.

Anti-Ecosystem
Changing the rules within you
market can help you evolve

Conclusion
Famous chemist Antoine Lavoisier stated "nothing is lost, nothing is created, all is transformed." In
regards to the sustainable packaging issue, this seems to be a good motto. It is tough to reinvent
functions or behaviors; instead, new sustainable packaging solutions are brought to life by challenging
those that already exist.
Bertrand Chovet

Bertrand Chovet seeks to build brand

distinctiveness and consumer loyalty in
every single client engagement. As
Managing Director of Interbrand Paris, his
commitment to high performance has
resulted in many award winning corporate,
retail and package design programs. For 15
years, Bertrand has worked with
Interbrand clients on extensive business
issues across a wide range of sectors,
including corporate, FMCG, retail and
luxury brands.

www.interbrand.com