The packaging industry #1

In recent years, the packaging industry has experienced significant growth, and is now at the center of consumers' increasingly demanding concerns. 

In this series of 4 articles, we will explore the packaging sector, examine current solutions, compare them and highlight their limitations.

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The packaging industry

The packaging industry is constantly evolving, and packaging must adapt to these changes. Its design must now be aligned with a new production logic, incorporating the reduction of harmful waste.

This is where the term eco-design* comes into play, gaining in importance as a way of raising awareness among manufacturers, companies and consumers.

Each type of packaging has its own specific role, whether primary, secondary or tertiary. It is crucial to understand the specific purpose of each. 

• Primary packaging, in direct contact with the product, aims to preserve and protect the finished product. 
• Secondary packaging, which covers the primary packaging, facilitates the handling of small items or groups together several products in a single package. 
• Tertiary packaging, which is what interests us most in these articles, protects the product and enables it to be transported from point A to point B.

In 2026, with an estimated 8,000 parcels shipped every second worldwide, parcel packaging design is becoming a major challenge. This assessment comes from Pitney Bowes, which analyses the volume and cost of parcels shipped to provide a global shipping index.

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Tertiary packaging

Tertiary packaging has undergone significant change, particularly with the rise of e-commerce. It now has to meet a variety of needs, such as product protection, efficient storage, compliance with transport standards and respect for the environment. 

In the past, tertiary packaging was often made from non-recyclable materials. This has had a number of negative repercussions on the environment, such as greenhouse gas emissions, resource consumption and long decomposition times. Faced with this environmental impact, consumers are increasingly sensitive to growing concerns about the environment.

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According to the latest DS Smith study, 43% of consumers are frustrated by excessive packaging and want less of it.

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The solution 

To remedy these problems, companies are developing new sustainable packaging solutions. Eco-designed packaging is emerging on the market to meet everyone's expectations. Businesses, packaging manufacturers and industrialists are mainly looking to use renewable and sustainable materials in the manufacture of their packaging, thereby limiting its environmental impact throughout its life cycle. This includes the stages of design, extraction of raw materials, production, distribution, packaging techniques, transport, use and end of life.

Many packaging innovations have emerged in response to these concerns.

In the next article, you will discover 7 types of packaging that respect eco-design

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Eco-design*: Taking action to include environmental issues in the design of products/services/product-service systems.

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Source 

Definition of eco-design