January 5, 2010
Global Sustainable Packaging Market to Double to $170B by 2014
The sustainable packaging market is growing much faster than the overall packaging industry, and is expected to double in size from $88 million in 2009 to $170 billion in 2014, according to a report from Pike Research. The global packaging industry will grow at a slower pace, reaching $530 billion in 2014, up from $429 billion in 2009.
The report also finds that along with the growth rate is an increasing burden on the environment in terms of raw materials, energy, transportation, and disposal. Researchers recommend several key areas where changes by the packaging industry can reduce its environmental impact.
These include the design of minimal packaging that can be easily reclaimed and the development of low-energy usage and environmentally-responsible packaging materials. Other recommendations include harmonizing global regulations related to reclaiming used packaging, monetizing all used packaging to establish post-consumer value and providing better data related to cradle-to-cradle cost of packaging options.
To help in some of these areas, the Sustainable Packaging Coalition recently released metrics to help companies measure their progress toward the coalition’s stated definition of sustainable packaging. Metrics cover eight areas including energy and materials use and clean production and transport.
At the same time, the International Standards Organization is developing six standards for international packaging, which cover source reduction, reuse, recycling, energy recovery, chemical recovery, composting and biodegradation.
Pike Research also expects that plastic-based packaging will be the fastest-growing segment of the sustainable packaging sector between now and 2014, and more eco-friendly plastic packaging will have a big impact because it accounts for more than one-third of the total packaging industry, second only to paper packaging.
Environmental management & energy news delivered daily to your inbox
Advertisers
Trends in Sustainability Performance Management
Take the lead on sustainability. - Take the lead in your industry. >>
Demystifying EPA’s Final GHG Tailoring Rule
Download webinar to learn the key provisions of the new Rule. >>
Sustainable Agricultural Partnerships Summit
Aug 10-11, San Francisco - Measure & Reduce Water & Carbon Impacts. >>
Can you take the pain out of carbon reporting?
See how with CA ecoSoftware. >>
Recent Daily News [ see all ]
- 07/29/2010
- 07/28/2010
- 07/27/2010
- CEC Throws Out Edison’s Claim to RECs from Mountain View Wind Projects
- Arizona’s Energy-Efficiency Ruling to Save Utility Customers $9B over Next Decade
- IBM Partnerships to Boost Energy Efficiency in Buildings
- Brea to Cut City’s Energy Use 40%
- Zotos Mfg Plant Gets Nod to Build 3.3-MW Wind Power Project
- Roundup – Porsche, UL Environment, EPA
- Green Rating Systems: Which One is Right for You?
- Russian City Saves $26,000 Annually with LED Street Lighting
- Robert Brunner On Solar Power For Handheld Devices
- HVAC Energy Reduction SW Saves Six NY Buildings 9.9M kWh Annually
- Roundup – Hormel Foods, BMW, Microsoft
- Green Marketing: How It Works and When to Use It
- Wind Power Installations Drop to 2007 levels
- EV Roundup: Nissan, Chevrolet, Enterprise, PG&E, Schneider Electric, Raser
- No Renewable Electricity Standard in Reid Energy Bill
- Vermont Resort Cuts Carbon Footprint with ‘Cow Power’
- CCS Technologies to Capture 65% and 90% of CO2 Emissions at Coal Power Plants
- Fuel Cell Power Plant Installed at Frozen Food Processing Plant
- Green Building Talked Up By Perkins & Will’s Peter Busby
- Large Wind Projects Get Ready to Roll in Arizona, California
- Why the BP Oil Spill is a Tragedy of the Commons, Part II
- Senators Push for a Renewable Energy Standard
- Roundup – GM, Seventh Generation, Wal-Mart
- Consumers Prefer to Charge their EVs at Home
- UPS Sustainability Report: Sets Goal to Improve Fuel Efficiency by 20%
- IT Sector Reduces Energy Costs by $2B, CO2 Emissions by 32 Million Tons
- Naval Base Lighting Retrofits Save Nearly $60,000 Annually
- TIAA-CREF CEO On Building Energy Efficiency
Charts [ see all ]
White Papers [ see all ]
- Your Customers Want Green!
- Eco-Competitiveness: Safeguarding Profitability and the World's Natural Resources
- Global Trends In Sustainability Performance Management
- The EPA's Mandatory Reporting Rule
- A Business Framework for Excelling at Enterprise Carbon Management
- Your Customers Want Green!
- What's On Your Sustainability Dashboard?
- 9 Ways to Reduce Energy Costs
Comments and Discussions
Matt Perry on Green Marketing: How It Works and When to Use It
"Hi Emily, Thank you for your article. Your background in science really comes through...."
Girard Gurgick on No Renewable Electricity Standard in Reid Energy Bill
"Does any one know why just passing a simple carbon tax is not the primary..."
Baltazar Perez on Green Marketing: How It Works and When to Use It
"Great article Emily and certainly environmental issues should be at the forefront..."
Tony Nocito on EPA Supports Superfund Tax Reinstatement
"Each one of the industries mentioned in this article are laden with asbestos. All of the..."
Terrence Murray on Wind Power Installations Drop to 2007 levels
"We had been hearing for a couple of months now from our project finance banking..."
Martyn on Green Marketing: How It Works and When to Use It
"There’s one area of corporate Greenwash that really irks me and that’s the..."
sandee loeffler on Green Marketing: How It Works and When to Use It
"We have just released a new packaging item for our plants to replace the 15 tons..."
Reader Comments
There are no comments for this story.