US Food and Beverage Manufacturers Aim to Reduce Packaging Waste

A study has found that food, beverage and consumer products manufacturers in the US will eliminate four billion pounds of packaging waste across the nation between 2005-2020.
According to the Grocery Manufacturers Association, the figure represents a 19% reduction of reporting companies' total average US packaging weight.
Since 2005, manufacturers have eliminated nearly 1.5 billion pounds of packaging waste and expects to remove another 2.5 billion pounds by 2020.
The report said that the 1.5 billion pounds of packaging avoided since 2005 includes about 800 million pounds of plastic and 500 million pounds of paper.
The reduction programme through 2005-2010 was achieved through 180 improvement initiatives that included package redesigns and increased use of recyclable inputs.
John Shanahan senior director of energy and environmental policy at theGrocery Manufacturers Association, said that packaging improvements also enable companies to ship more units per truckload, reduce greenhouse gas emissions and conserve resources such as water and energy.