With increasing attention being paid to the environmental issues caused by plastic packaging, many people are looking to paper and cardboard as more sustainable alternatives in the hope they may reduce waste and pollution.

The issues with plastic

Plastic, manufactured from fossil fuels and non-biodegradable, is bad for the environment. This is particularly true of flexible plastic, like the sachets, wrappers and bags often used as packaging, which cannot be easily recycled. Instead, they often end up polluting the ocean and entering the food chain.

How paper-based packaging could help

Cardboard packaging such as that used at https://capscases.co.uk/services-2/sustainable-cardboard-packaging/, is made from paper. With sustainable forest management, trees are a renewable resource. The resulting cardboard is relatively easy to recycle, and if disposed of improperly will eventually biodegrade and return to nature.

Viability

Switching to paper-based packaging on a large scale will not be viable without innovations throughout the supply chain around responsibly sourcing and producing materials, avoiding hazardous chemicals, and ensuring local recycling provision, along with increasing compatibility with consumer and economic needs.

Only one part of the solution

Changing from predominantly plastic to predominantly paper-based packaging will not, on its own, solve the issue of pollution. It would have to be considered as part of wider-ranging reforms to reduce the use of packaging more generally, as well as investment in recycling infrastructure and protection of livelihoods.

There is no one solution that will fix all of the current problems with plastic packaging, but a shift to incorporating more paper-based containers and wrappers could be a workable starting point.