Future Bright for Sustainable Packaging
Tompkins’ Supply Chain Consortium Sees Green Packaging Evolution
RALEIGH, NC, November 12, 2009 -- A Tompkins’ Supply Chain Consortium survey of top retail- and manufacturing-related companies reveals that more than 65% of companies have some type of sustainable packaging policy in place, while 28% are currently developing a policy.
“When projecting the evolution of sustainable packaging, the future appears to be bright,” says Bruce Tompkins, Executive Director of the Consortium and author of the Packaging Sustainability Report. “Sustainable packaging is a very important issue for all types of companies across all aspects of their supply chains, and it continues to be thought of as a long-term, higher-level strategic process that provides overall direction to the organization.”
For 79% of companies, packaging sustainability impacts their strategic direction in the area of energy and material costs, and 76% see an impact in environmental and economic concerns. At the same time, executives see less of an impact in the areas of increasing competitiveness and access to new markets, indicating that sustainable packaging may be more about “hard” savings rather than “soft” benefits.
To improve their use of packaging sustainability initiatives, respondents say that that they need (See Figure 1):
- A better collection and recovery process;
- Higher end-user awareness;
- A better designed supply chain; and
- A life-cycle analysis process that identifies the cost effectiveness of sustainability initiatives.
“Sustainable packaging projects are resting on the shoulders of transportation efficiency, improved package handling, and the percentage of recycled content in the packaging material,” adds Tompkins. “Initiatives that are ‘green’ (financially) and ‘green’ (environmentally) are needed.” (See Figure 2)
The Packaging Sustainability survey is the first of a four-part series being conducted by Tompkins’ Supply Chain Consortium. For additional information on sustainability, view the recent blog post by Jim Tompkins, President and CEO of Tompkins Associates, or read the full Packaging Sustainability Report. Topics for the upcoming sustainability reports include:
- Part II: Transportation Sustainability (December 2009)
- Part III: Greening Facilities (2010)
- Part IV: Waste and Recycling (2010)
To learn more about Tompkins’ Supply Chain Consortium, visit the website and choose the "new member" option. The Consortium also has a LinkedIn group for companies that are interested in staying current on the latest in supply chain benchmarking and best practices. .
Contact Information
Keri McManus
Tompkins Associates
919-855-5516
kmcmanus@tompkinsinc.com
About Tompkins’ Supply Chain Consortium
Tompkins’ Supply Chain Consortium is the premier source for supply chain benchmarking and best practices knowledge. With more than 300 participating retail, manufacturing and wholesale/distribution companies, the Consortium sponsors a comprehensive repository of 17,000-plus benchmarks complemented by search capabilities, online analysis tools, topic forums and peer networking for supply chain executives and practitioners. The Consortium is led by the needs of its membership and an Advisory Board that includes executives from Campbell Soup Company, Hallmark Cards, Hewlett Packard, Ingram Micro, Kraft Foods, Miller-Coors, The Coca-Cola Company, Target, and True Value Hardware. To learn more about how your company can become a member of the Supply Chain Consortium, contact John Foley, 919-855-5461 or learn more here.
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