Need of additional educational drive on eco-friendly packaging

Mariecar Jara-Puyod, Senior Reporter

Consumers or end-users want sustainable products which include eco-friendly packages and while more educational campaigns have to be pursued so they get a full grasp of their benefits, it is imperative as well that they be guided on how not to be caught unaware regarding green-washing.

The necessary consciousness on green-washing was pointed out by World Packaging Organisation (WPO)-Sustainability & Save Food vice president Nerida Kelton, among the speakers/panelists at the fourth discussion session of the Emirates Environmental Group (EEG) “Taking Packaging Full Circle” held on Monday morning in Dubai.

Aside from Kelton who participated virtually, the other guests were Ministry of Economy-Cooperatives & Strategic Reserve Economy director Samah Mohamed Al Hajeri, Al Bayader International-Sustainability & Business Development head Jamil Haddad, Taghleef Industries-AsiaPacific/Middle East/Africa regional sales manager Abdul Rasheed, and Falcon Pack-Research & Development/Quality Control manager Santosh Kumar.

EEG chairperson Habiba Al Marashi said that the topic was chosen as this had been among the most suggested to the non-government organisation. She cited a “European study” which revealed that 60 per cent of the farthest-most areas of the world, plastics were also discovered while 40 per cent of the plastics produced worldwide are the single use type. She added that hoped to be addressed are the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals Numbers 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, and 17 which tackle responsible, inclusive and collective approaches towards protecting and saving land and water ecosystems, by way of sustainable consumption and production patterns and climate change solutions so that everyone enjoys peace and prosperity.

Meanwhile, Al Hajeri presented a brief on the UAE Circular Economy Policy 2021-2031 chaired by the Ministry of Climate Change which has so far 22 policy proposals coming from both the public and private sectors.

Established in Tokyo (Japan) in 1968 with current member-countries at 66, WPO is the non-profit, non-governmental international federation of national and regional organisations into the public advocacy and education of developing and producing packaging products in accordance to globally-accepted engineering as well as science and technology innovations or practices since everyone cannot do away with these.

WPO’s Kelton expressed her views on green-washing at the open forum as packaging comes in various forms namely biodegradable (of organic compounds such as cellulose and proteins which easily decompose as these are safely consumable by bacteria, fungi and algae), bio-based polymers otherwise known as bio-plastics (from the fats and oils of vegetables like potatoes, corn and recycled food waste, wood fragments), compostable (biodegradable and therefore easily decomposable but leaving no harmful waste), and paper: “I just want to add that there are challenges with compostable packaging. One of them is green-washing. Green-washing is very important for consumers to understand because it is very misleading and very confusing. Off they go to a retail outlet and (they) see something (printed) on the bottle and on the packaging. It is actually unfair to the consumers because they actively purchase that believing that they are going to make a difference.”

“One of the changes that is happening around the world is to ensure that we only see certified compostable packaging around the world. These are certified by way of international standards to ensure that these impact (us and the world positively and we all benefit),” she added.

Kelton, who cited in her earlier talk that it is paramount that everyone is re-oriented with regards the “Re-think/Re-design/Reduce/Re-use mindset especially so that eight billion kilogrammes of plastic waste float in all waterways around the world each year, continued: “It is important that when we put claims on packs, these are honest claims. These are important in consumer discussions and consumer understanding. There are green-washing instances around the world. It is a challenge. We have to do something about it.”

According to the corporatefinanceinstitute.com, green-washing is “making false, misleading, unsubstantiated, or otherwise incomplete claims about the sustainability of a product, service or business operation (which may be unintentional due to a lack of knowledge or understanding on the part of the management but sometimes (it) is also carried out intentionally through marketing efforts.”