Report published to put packaging in perspective

Entitled ‘Packaging in Perspective', the study aims to counter the often negative public perception of packaging and highlights the work already being done to reduce its environmental impact.

In particular, it claims that packaging accounts for less than 3% of all solid waste in the UK and that 60% of it is recycled each year.

And, it says that £1.5 billion has been spent by businesses in the last 10 years to double the amount of packaging recovered and recycled.

The report was prepared by the Advisory Committee on Packaging (ACP) – the industry body which advises the government on packaging policy – and has received support from research organisation INCPEN, the Packaging Federation and recycling and compliance company Valpak.

It reflects the work of a Communications Task Force set up by the ACP, which included representatives from BERR, Defra and WRAP.

John Turner, chair of the ACP, explained: “Packaging receives a lot of attention which is out of proportion to its scale and the overall waste stream and comment is often weighted heavily against this important industry. Packaging is necessary to protect products in the modern world.

“The Task Force concluded that many of the facts about what has been achieved and what is being done to reduce the environmental impact of packaging were not generally known. This publication is aimed at presenting these facts to bring more balance into the debate,” he added.

Report

According to the report, roughly 10 million tonnes of packaging are used in the UK each year, of which 4.7 million tonnes protects products bought by households.

As a country, the UK uses less packaging per person than most other large EU countries and recycles more than nations including France, Spain and Italy.

The report explains how packaging is important to protect food such as cucumbers, grapes and prepared salads from going off – thereby preventing another source of waste.

Mr Turner said: “I am indebted to the members of the Task Force for the time spent on preparing this publication.”