Plastic or glass? Sometimes the choice is not obvious. Here are a couple of insights from our experience into this complex and multi-faceted issue.
In recent years, as the response to climate change becomes more urgent, we have been experiencing an increasing demand for more sustainable solutions across many aspects of our consulting and development work.
However, in our experience there’s usually a big discrepancy between perceived sustainability, based on common assumptions, and true sustainability, where there is a measurable impact.
In most cases the product contained within the packaging has a significantly higher environmental impact than the packaging itself. However, often there is more attention given to the perception of packaging, than its function and purpose. In which case, failing to maintain the integrity and longevity of a product will actually have a greater environmental impact than the production of the packaging.
Which is the most sustainable packaging solution for milk - a glass bottle or a plastic bag? Glass is an excellent, durable material, but if not reused multiple times, its environmental impact is relatively high due to the energy needed for its production, transportation and recycling. And these impacts are magnified by its weight. On the other hand, a thin light-proof plastic bag with a re-usable holder, is extremely lightweight and easy to produce, and if properly disposed of, it offers a much more sustainable solution.
In Switzerland in the 1990’s a plastic bag was a commercially available solution for milk packaging. However, it failed to satisfy the Innovation Sweet Spot - that tricky balance between technical feasibility, business viability and user desirability. And was discontinued after a few years mainly due to handling difficulties for both the consumer and the retailer. Sometimes the solution is not obvious, and perception or popularity overtakes reality. We need to be open to evaluate all options. Which is why we look at all aspects, such as material, energy usage, logistics and regionality, of the product.
From our broad experience, we realise it is not enough to have a strong and robust technically sustainable design or service, but it is essential that the business model also enables the creation of value and that we are meeting the user needs and can withstand the scrutiny of our customers.
As with any other innovations, it is imperative to find the Innovation Sweet Spot – that tricky balance between the technical feasibility, the business viability and the user’s desirability. All these aspects must be considered to create a successful product. Clearly the milk bag failed on at least one of these points!
Find the sweet spot of desirability feasibility and viability.
As people become more aware, it is not enough to appear to be sustainable, you need to be true and authentic. Together with our customers, we are committed to finding a wide range of sustainable solutions, whether it’s for existing products or completely new concepts. Although, it is also not necessary to change everything – small steps can also make a big impact!
Sustainability is not just something we help our clients with. We have also developed and launched our own green technologies. These include:
Joulia - a heat recovery shower system that recuperates the heat from the wastewater to reduce the amount of hot water used.
Smixin - a smart hand washing technology that provides high levels of hygiene with significantly less soap and water.
Gjosa - a new showering technology that uses 75% less water.
If you want to become active yourself in the redesign of products, business models or services – we can help you from reviewing current materials or solutions through to developing new innovative products together including a full life cycle assessment.
Interested? If so, then let’s get in touch!
