Package design continually scores near the top in Healthcare Packaging readership surveys. On page 43, Joe Kornick of design firm Kornick Lindsay says that to develop optimal over-the-counter packages, manufacturers need to make their brands "consumer-centric," building in convenience and attributes so that consumers will inextricably link the package to the brand.
OTC packages already carry multiple responsibilities. Must they also meet sustainability concerns?
Kornick says his firm's recent review of package concepts concluded that an integrated primary/secondary/merchandising strategy (a master package) is more sustainable than when components are designed and developed incrementally.
From this corner it seems that packagers have long considered the potential economic benefits of source-reduction, light-weighting, and down-gauging efforts, as well as the use of recyclable materials.
On page 35, Ben Miyares of the Packaging Machinery and Manufacturers Institute says, "The press for sustainable packaging operations will lead pharmaceutical manufacturers—and others—to recognize that carbon footprint, energy efficiency, and greenhouse gas emissions are related to the processes behind the packages, not the packages themselves. And, as they recognize the rising cost of fuel, the need to improve sustainability by reducing demands will become paramount."
Consumers, Wal-Mart, and manufacturers are helping to speed the sustainable packaging train by championing earth-friendly efforts. A recent issue of Plastics News reported that"consumer health-care giant Johnson & Johnson is embracing new ideas in its packaging, including an emphasis on post-consumer recycled content for the plastic used in some of its iconic brands."
As the sustainability train rumbles down the track, we may well see examples of "greenwash" when it comes to promoting environmental efforts, but when companies such as Wal-Mart and Johnson & Johnson embrace such efforts, it's likely that this train won't slow down anytime soon.
By Jim Butschli, Editor
