“Everyone is pursuing sustainability,” he writes. “But if change happens when the cost of the status quo is greater than the risk of change, we really need to focus on raising the costs of the unsustainable systems that represent the unsustainable status quo.” Fast Company cofounder Alan Webber

What makes packaging unsustainable?  Sustainable is not just green materials or recycled content. It includes the cost of disposing of the packaging when it is finished. It includes too much packaging, but intermediate and consumer packaging.

• overpackaging     Do you really need to  put something in a box before you wrap it? Will a tray do? Can you wrap it as is? Can you bundle it rather than put it in an intermediate box? How can you minimize the packaging? Does the package conform to the product or inflate it?
• using more material than you need      Can there be too much material in the wrap? As a process, overwrap uses less film that shrink or flow wrap, but what else can be reduced or reused? Is the packaging the right size for the product?
• not telling the consumer what to do with the packaging. See what makes packages that make consumer choices easier. Many consumer want to know what to do with the packaging when the product is gone.

What else makes packaging unsustainable?

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