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In light of the global concern surrounding waste consumerism, global warming, and environmental-related matters, businesses are taking a step up in positively contributing to this cause. The are many ways to go about this, starting with one of the most wasteful areas in business: packaging.
Biodegradable packaging, also named green or eco-friendly packaging, stands in stark contrast to the familiar single-use packaging. From the manufacturing stage to the end of its life in a compost bin, biodegradable packaging aims to do the least harm to the environment and leave less carbon footprint.
In this article, you’ll learn more about biodegradable packaging from Packaging World, among other suppliers, and a few of the advantages that come with using it.
1. It Helps Reduce Your Carbon Footprint
If your business can do something that positively affects the present and the future generations, you can say you’ve aced your corporate social responsibility. You’re making a lasting impact in good ways. One is reducing your business’s carbon footprint using biodegradable and eco-friendly packaging materials.
Biodegradable packaging is a better choice because they are made through more conscious processes that aim to lower the number of resources being used. Moreover, unlike plastics, biodegradable packaging will have little to no harsh chemicals, making them safe for our soils once composted.
2. It Decomposes Safely
Biodegradable packaging is often made from natural materials that decay and go back to the earth without leaving harmful traces. They are compostable and take three to six months to decompose.
Plastic, on the other hand, takes thousands of years to break down fully. Get this—every single piece of plastic manufactured is still on this planet, and the first ones ever made will not yet decompose for another 500 years. The over-dependence on plastics is what creates mountains of trash in landfills and great patches of floating garbage on our oceans.
3. It’s Free Of Allergens And Toxins
A growing concern for safe products and packaging has led consumers to be more discerning with their purchases. They take the time to read through each label thoroughly and search the web for more info about the products they consume.
Say, for instance, you’re a brand that sells healthy, natural, and allergen-free cosmetics while making itself known as a sustainable business. Surely, your packaging has to be along the same line as well. It doesn’t make sense for customers to choose those types of products and then be content with receiving their orders in toxic-laden packaging materials.
If that’s the case, the good news is that biodegradable packaging materials are often free from allergens and toxins. To ensure this, be sure to check with your suppliers as to what substances the packaging materials are made of and what processes were done to develop those biodegradable packaging materials.
4. It May Support Small Famers
Small farmers who practice non-commercialized farming processes have no way to beat bigger companies who do mass farming. However, this latter isn’t always the safest, as it means the farm is usually exposed to many chemicals like fertilizers and pesticides.
When a business decides to use biodegradable packaging materials, it means, in a way, they’re also supporting small farmers who practice clean farming. This gives small farmers a chance to thrive and earn an income.
Moreover, choosing biodegradable packaging also enables your business to contribute to driving the circular economy. Small farmers can continue to rely on having healthy land to till when the risk of burying chemicals from plastic is less. The reason behind this goes back to how biodegradable packaging materials are often free from chemicals and are made of natural materials.
5. It Keeps Customers Happy
If you have customers conscious about making eco-friendly decisions, you can be certain that they’ll be disgruntled with companies still heavily reliant on plastics. You can keep your customers happy when they find out you’re one of those companies that have environmentalism to heart. When customers are happy, they’re also more likely to keep purchasing from your brand.
Why It Pays To Make The Switch
While there’s much ado about making greener choices for the environment, it’s also not surprising to learn how many businesses may still not be able to wrap their head around how they can positively contribute to this. After going through the items above, you should now be able to restate all those concerns. The bottom line is that, yes, when done right, there are many benefits of using biodegradable packaging materials. Better yet, those benefits are holistic, affecting the environment, the businesses using such, and even the customers as a whole.
