Plastic in packaging - Boon or Bane?
At Brew Renew, we are driven by our mission to reduce the overall ecological impact on our planet. Sustainability lies at the core of our values, and we recognize the urgent need to minimize the use of materials that harm the environment and its inhabitants. Plastic, as a packaging material, has long been a topic of concern in environmental discussions. Despite our best efforts to reduce its usage, we acknowledge that it still plays a significant role in our operations. Allow us to shed light on the reasons behind our conscious use of plastic as cosmetic bottles and our commitment to finding alternative solutions.
Packaging serves a vital purpose for any brand. It ensures the safe transportation and preservation of our products, shielding them from factors like humidity, light, heat, and other external influences that could compromise their quality. We strive to deliver our products to you in pristine condition, maintaining their freshness and maximizing their shelf life. Therefore, choosing the right packaging material is crucial, not only for establishing our brand’s visual identity but also for safeguarding the integrity and longevity of our offerings.
The ideal packaging material should excel in functionality, cost-effectiveness, and environmental sustainability, all while being visually appealing. However, the reality is that packaging options, whether glass, paper, or plastic, each come with their own set of advantages and disadvantages.
Plastic, being affordable, food-grade safe, durable, and highly versatile, has become the most widely used packaging material in the cosmetic, food and beverage industry. However, its non-biodegradable nature poses a grave concern. It can take up to 600 years for plastic to degrade, resulting in an alarming accumulation of plastic waste in our oceans, landfills, and even outer space. Recognizing this issue, the world is actively seeking solutions to mitigate the environmental impact caused by plastic across various industries.
Bioplastics have emerged as a modern solution to address the problems associated with plastic pollution. These materials blend degradable and non-biodegradable components, ensuring recyclability and offering a viable alternative to traditional plastics. However, safe and food-grade bioplastics remain limited in availability and come with higher costs, often finding applications in the manufacturing of garbage bags and cutlery. The debate around their biodegradability adds complexity to their usage.
Experts raise valid concerns about the additives used to enhance the durability of bioplastic packaging, which can significantly prolong the degradation process. Additionally, the lack of facilities to process bioplastics in India results in their disposal in landfills alongside ordinary plastic, undermining their intended environmental benefits.
While bioplastics show some promise as an alternative, they currently only marginally outperform ordinary plastic in terms of biodegradability and come at a higher cost. Moreover, the long-term environmental impact of bioplastics, including the persistence of additives in nature, remains uncertain. With limited waste processing infrastructure, bioplastics often share the fate of conventional plastic, lingering in landfills for extended periods.
On the same lines, even though many cosmetic companies use glass packaging for their products, the shift from plastic to glass nowhere ensures increasing chances of recyclability. A consumer might receive a body scrub in a glass bottle and still not care to recycle/reuse it. However, a conscious consumer might even recycle/reuse plastic bottles if the intent is right. Glass also poses a high risk of breaking in transit hence requiring additional packaging within the box to make it secure and still not ensuring 100% chance of being safe. So it does not make any sense to shift to glass other than the loss in opportunity of calling ourselves a 100% plastic free brand.
So, why do we continue to use plastic at Brew Renew? Our foremost priority is to provide superior quality products that reach you safely and maintain their wholesomeness throughout their shelf life. We are dedicated to promoting a sustainable and plant-based lifestyle for all. However, investing in costly modern bioplastic packaging, which also exhibits persistence in nature, would significantly raise product prices, limiting accessibility for many consumers.
We acknowledge that plastics pose a significant environmental concern, and we are committed to continuously evolving our products.