March 30th, 2009

From Green Right Now Reports

Product manufacturers are increasingly pushing to make their packaging more environmentally friendly and that will drive US demand for green packaging to nearly $45 billion in 2013, according to a new report. The new prominence of environmental issues among manufacturers is the result of elevated raw material and fuel costs in recent years.

The report, made available by ReportLinker, says much of the increased activity in green packaging has been driven by Wal-Mart, which unveiled a new Packaging Scorecard in November 2006. The scorecard was implemented in February 2008 and is used by Wal-Mart to evaluate the packaging used by suppliers in terms of its eco-friendliness, including factors that reduce waste as well as packaging and transportation costs.

Biodegradable plastic packaging and plastic recycled content packaging are expected to have the fastest gains, the report says. Growth for biodegradable plastic packaging will be driven by price competitiveness with conventional resins, rapidly expanding capacity and lower pricing volatility than petroleum-based plastic packaging materials. The fastest growing biodegradable packaging segments will be cups, plates and bowls, and containers.

Among the challenges facing the rollout of new packaging will be performance drawbacks, capacity limitations and the lack of consumer composting networks in most areas of the US.

Demand for glass recycled content packaging is expected to increase at an above-average pace, reflecting industry efforts to boost recycling rates and incorporate higher levels of recycled content in glass containers.

The largest markets for green packaging are food, consumer products and beverages, which together represented two-thirds of total green packaging demand in 2008. However, the fastest growing markets through 2013 will be the food service and shipping markets.