The US Department of Commerce Foundation talks us through four factors that impact the increased adoption of renewable materials.
“Businesses and governments alike recognize the importance of moving toward a regenerative, restorative economic model, in which resources are endlessly cycled back into supply chains and waste does not exist. Known as the circular economy, this alternative to the “take-make-waste” linear model has been gaining momentum as a viable approach for decoupling economic growth from resource constraints. The business rationale for the circular economy is a compelling one – it represents a trillion dollar opportunity, with enormous potential for economic growth and innovation, while protecting the natural capital and ecosystem services that are the foundation of healthy societies and economies globally.
Adopting renewable materials from sustainable sourcing in packaging is an important enabler and contributor to advancing the circular economy and bringing it to scale. That’s because bio-based materials sourced from plants, trees and marine systems bring crucial innovation to the front end of life cycle and material sourcing. When we pay more attention to the resources that go into how a package is made in the first place, that, along with recycling, can lead us to a circular approach that helps protect precious natural resources and optimize the re-use of products for as long as possible. A new report from Tetra Pak explores opportunities for the consumer packaged goods industry to embrace packaging made with renewable materials, as well as the challenges that must be addressed to move forward with these new practices.
The report, Embracing Value From Natural Capital: Advancing Packaging Solutions that Consumers Want and Companies Can Provide, highlights current understanding of renewable resources across the consumer packaged goods supply chain. It also examines barriers—real and perceived—of the adoption of renewable materials from sustainable sourcing, and level of awareness of the business and environmental benefits of using these materials to tackle resource constraints and enhance long-term growth strategies…”
Read on at: U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation
