CBD Packaging: Why Sustainable Packaging Needs a Lot More Than 100% Recyclability
There is intense competition in markets around the globe and the packaging industry is no different. Packaging Manufacturers and Printers invest heavily in marketing, not only to stand out from the crowd but at the very least, to stand with it.
As a result, packaging manufacturer’s eco-friendliness and sustainability focus are frequently advertised elements. While there is greater awareness about the importance of sustainability than ever before, sustainability-focused initiatives are typically a part of the broader marketing strategy of a company.
This is why a deeper dive into their eco-friendly process would reveal that most packaging organizations are only going as far as recyclability when talking about sustainability. While recyclability is without a doubt a critical milestone, true sustainability is much more.
We’ll let you in on a secret – recyclability of paper packaging is an inherent feature of the product itself and most times, the manufacturer is making no extra effort towards sustainability.
Paper packaging allowing for 100% recycling is the reason packaging manufacturers can advertise this as a sustainability feature of their organization.
That doesn’t mean anything – in fact, it is quite the opposite.
100% recyclability of paper packaging, such as corrugated cartons, mailer boxes, and even grey-board rigid boxes, means that from a brand’s perspective, they are more sustainable choices. Businesses around the world are transitioning from plastic to paper-based packaging solutions owing to its wider eco-friendliness.
Businesses that are truly sustainability-focused target their packaging to be made of entirely recycled material to begin with. This helps in creating a more circular economy and is a leap forward towards a more holistic sustainability approach.
One of the forerunner industries in the use of recycled material is the CBD industry.
CBD Packaging
The CBD industry sells CBD topicals, CBD Vapes and Cartridges, CBD Supplements and CBD Medications, CBD Pills and Capsules amongst other variations.
Each of these products requires custom packaging that fits their unique product and size requirements.
In our experience, the majority of CBD brand owners prefer to use unbleached kraft paper or kraft paperboard for their packaging.
Kraft paper is made by chemically converting wood chips into pulp making it primarily pressed wood pulp. This aspect gives kraft exceptional strength and durability and reduces the number of steps towards getting the final product eventually, making the paper eco-friendlier. Non-wood sources such as bamboo, agri-residues, and pine resins are also being used to develop kraft paper which means that increasing the use of Kraft instead of regular paper would reduce the load on wood-producing trees.
The popularity of kraft packaging amongst CBD managers has two main reasons:
- Firstly, this packaging type can reduce its carbon footprint by choosing unbleached kraft paper that requires less new material and less processing. This is a way of giving back to nature from where they are sourcing their multiuse CBD products.
- Secondly, the earthiness of kraft material lends to the brand image of the CBD product. Custom kraft boxes for example can engage the customer’s perception of the product being close to nature.
On the downside, however, kraft boxes are significantly unprocessed compared to regular paper. This makes kraft unsuitable for various types of printing and finishing processes. When working with brown kraft paper or unbleached kraft paper, it is best to discuss the print design and aesthetics with your custom packaging manufacturer.
We recommend our CBD packaging clients or generally those looking to work with kraft boxes, to stay close to the earthy colors in their designs. You can discuss the design and color choices in detail by speaking to one of our packaging design specialists.
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Moving from Recyclable to Sustainable Packaging
The first and foremost element of going from recyclability to sustainability within the packaging industry is to consciously think about our collective decisions and their impact on the environment.
With highly recyclable paper products, the packaging industry needs to reduce the need for virgin materials. As a custom packaging client, it is also your responsibility to ensure that your packaging manufacturer is putting conscious effort into sustainability and net zero supply chains.
Here are a few steps that can be taken towards a packaging industry with a holistic sustainability approach:
- Eliminate energy-powered drying of the packaging. For this, work towards reducing emergency orders. Make sure the packaging manufacturer has plenty of time to manufacture and dry the packaging and then the packaging manufacturer needs to ensure that their team is on track.
- Target towards zero plastic in items such as box inserts. Instead, transform already recycled material.
- Through better planning, increase the order size and optimize the shipping of repeat orders to reduce the impact of transportation on the environment.
- Deploy superior design and printing technologies to minimize wastage.
The need for packaging will always be as great as the need for products. That is why an industry with such massive volumes must ensure that they don’t stop at just 100% recyclability of paper-based packaging materials and move beyond to 100% sustainability.
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Ayesha Khubaib
Ayesha has a diverse experience in areas of marketing and management. Over the years, Ayesha has been involved in the packaging sector in various capacities and now aims to share packaging market insights with her readers
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