Sustainability has become the mantra of the packaging world. No matter which way you look, companies are developing new products and processes that will reduce packaging's impact on the environment. Nowhere is this movement more critical than in the flexible packaging space.

Consumer packaged goods companies are all abuzz these days as they implement new sustainability initiatives. Indeed, Harvard Business Review says: “Sustainability is the new mantra for strategic differentiation.

For product and brand managers responsible for food and beverage packaging, 2018 marked an increased focus on reducing single-use plastics. In the past year, more than 250 companies signed the MacArthur Foundation’s New Plastics Economy Global Commitment to reduce or eliminate single-use plastics.

Avery Dennison has some ambitious sustainability goals it wants to hit by 2025. It wants to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 3 percent year-over-year, go up to 95 percent landfill-free, eliminate 70 percent of matrix and liner, and source film and chemicals more responsibly, among others.

It was about three years ago when Bear Naked Granola decided it wanted to overhaul the packaging on its line of best-selling granolas and granola bites. As a leading brand in the granola space, it wanted to take the lead in another important category: sustainable packaging. But the brand wanted to maintain the feel, function and appearance of its current packaging.

The packaging industry, like much of the world around us, is making strides to become more sustainable and environmentally friendly. The flexographic printing market is not exempt from these trends and, as printers begin to feel pressure from customers to become more sustainable, it is important to consider how and where to implement these changes.

TC Transcontinental Packaging won the Gold for Sustainability (for a second year in a row), Gold for Packaging Excellence and Silver for Technical Innovation at the recent Flexible Packaging Achievement Awards.

Toray Plastics (America), Inc. has joined the Sustainable Packaging Coalition (SPC), a membership-based collaborative that leverages the power of industry to make packaging more sustainable. 

Plastic Suppliers, Inc., has earned a Safe Quality Food certification after 10 months of work and a significant investment.

As brand owners in the food space look forward to 2019, several trends could – and should – affect their upcoming packaging decisions.