Page 32 - FoodFocusThailand No.159 June 2019

SPECIAL FOCUS

What's in it for the consumer? Plastic free As the scale of marine litter grows, there is now
Recycling may be second nature to some, but the inconvenience of a growing consensus around the need for different attitudes to
cleaning and sorting waste for recycling is a barrier for others. In 4the material. In the UK, plastic pollution has become the most
response, an increasing number of schemes are aiming to reward pressing environmental concern, cited by 47% of UK adults as the
recycling behaviour. For example, in Turkey, commuters can trade empty most important environmental issue.
bottles for credit on Istanbul Cards, the city’s travel card. In the UK, While the term ‘plastic-free’ may appear to be a simple one, there
motorists receive a 20p parking voucher for every bottle they bring to is no universal definition. For example, the lack of definition has
the Citi Park in Leeds. allowed Dutch organic supermarket chain, Ekoplaza to include
cellulose-based plastics within its plastic-free aisle. Cellulose-based
What's in it for the brand? plastic (usually cellulose acetate) is biobased (made from plants) and
Greater clarity on which parts of food packaging can be recycled is the biodegradeable, suggesting that the ‘right’ kind of plastic may find a
top factor that would encourage consumers to recycle more frequently. ready place in plastic-free aisles and stores. New opportunities such
Just 27% of global new beauty and personal care launches in 2017 as plastic-free aisles, packagefree stores and alternative pack
featured an environmentally friendly packaging claim, with recyclable materials allow consumersto actively make choices about the plastic
packaging accounting for only part of this (drink 27%, food 9%). Food that is put out in the world.
packs that are made of several different component materials are
widespread, making them difficult or impossible to recycle fully. While What's in it for the consumer?
some products show a simple breakdown of which parts of packaging Package-free stores offer loose, unpackaged products. The shopper
are recyclable, this is not universal. Products that are more vocal about is required to bring along their own containers and products are
how easy they are to recycle should win the loyalty of consumers by bought by weight. This enables the shopper to buy just the amount
presenting a more proactive and environmentally responsible image. of product they need, preventing food and packaging waste. Such
stores typically focus on dry goods and some liquid beauty and
Reinventing the box As consumers increasingly embrace household products.
online shopping, branded e-commerce packaging and packaging
3strategies are changing the face of the industry. Packaging and What's in it for the brand?
brand professionals agree the rapid development of e-commerce has The drive to plastic-free aisles shows consumer exhaustion with
had a greater impact on the business, technologies, supply chain, excess plastic packaging. However, few would want to lose the
engineering, and design of packaging globally than anything the industry convenience and benefits plastic packaging can bring. Brands and
has experienced in the past several decades. Unlike efforts in the early retailers need to be aware of the opportunity to remove plastic
2000s to incorporate radio-frequency identification (RFID) tags to item- packaging where this can be done without storage or usage issues.
level packaging or the 2006 roll out of the Walmart Scorecard, Even plastic-free packaging often includes plant-based plastics,
e-commerce poses challenges and opportunities at every link in the showing the lack of clarity in the plastic-free call. Brands can address
supply chain. These challenges are being met with initiatives that drive consumer confusion and leverage this to educate about ‘good’ plastic
costs down and consumer engagement up. There are limitless that preserves products, offers convenience and can be recycled, vs
opportunities for brand marketers to think about the next generation of ‘bad’ plastic that adds little to the consumer experience. With the
shelf presence, the “hero images” on retailers’ websites, and the momentum behind a plastic free aisle in every supermarket growing,
“unboxing” experience when a product and package is delivered. From brands need to consider what packaging solution can give them a
an environmental perspective, e-commerce is already a catalyst for new place on the shelf.
ideas in sustainable design.
Global E-commerce sales reached more than US$2.1 trillion in 2017
and are expected reach US$3.8 trillion by 2021, representing an annual
growth rate of around 14% per year. With total global retail sales of an
estimated US$15 trillion, e-commerce has reached a market share of
14%, which is forecast to reach 22% by 2021. Countries with relatively
high – and increasing – e-commerce market shares are China, South
Korea and Indonesia, while the most important countries for e-commerce
value sales are the US, China, the UK, and Japan.

What's in it for the consumer?
In traditional retailing, a key component of purchase consideration is
branding and messaging on the exterior of a package. In e-commerce,
brands are learning that messaging and branding should be split between
the secondary, or shipping container, and then shifting traditional
decoration and copy to the interior. This reversal of design elements
gives consumers a sense of delight and surprise when receiving and
opening an e-commerce purchase.
What’s in it for the brand?
While consumers currently prefer to buy groceries in-store instead of
online, the convenience of buying clothing, electronics, and even beauty
and personal care items online will eventually spill over into food, drink,
and household products. That is exactly why packaging that meets the
demands of e-commerce shipping channels must be designed and เอกสารอ้างอิง/References
Mintel’s 2019 Global Packaging Trends
commercialised now.
32 FOOD FOCUS THAILAND JUNE 2019