Impact Of Packaging On Environment And Taste Senses of the Consumers - Essay Example

Impact Of Packaging On Environment And Consumers’ Tastes Research of client of the of Department, of university. Correspondence concerning this paper should be addressed to client’s name, Name of department, name of University, address. Contact: (e-mail) We live in extremely over-packaged world that shows how disposable all nations are. While the manufacturers are in pursue of different ways on increasing their welfare, consumers stand highly concerned about the ethical and environmental impact of packaging on human health and life. In accordance with the recent SWOT analysis1, ethical consumers seek clear and evident ethical food although currently this desire is not satisfied properly. Ethical consumer is always concerned about environmentally friendly food staff purchase. In this regard, everyone may put a question to each other: what does environmental responsibility cover? The answer is extremely simple and comes to mind at once as it is closely related to every person of the whole human being. Thus, environmental reliance encompasses sustainable local production of seasonal food that is free from overwhelming packaging and is friendly for waste reduction. To go into details, sustainability addresses the issue of where to grow fish, animals and other products to ensure that necessary climate conditions are met for them. With respect to the second criteria – local production, I would like to note report, issued by Centre for Education and Research in Environmental Strategies in which scientists confirmed that the distance food travels from field to plate should always be taken into account2. Thus ethical consumers stand by the point that manufacturers should be situated within the territory where their direct markets exist. Seasonal factor is supported by the consumers in such a way that e.g. watermelons as products should not be bought in winter as it travels a long distance from place to place in such case. Food packaging is another issue that poses threat to ethical behavior of consumers. The abovementioned SWOT analysis and research may be an evidence that nowadays consumers are likely to purchase fresh vegetables and fruits at the market rather than to buy wrapped sweets in the supermarket with a colorful paper. In the world there are not many companies and producers which take care about their consumers. But what is interesting, McDonalds was the first food chain which decided to include nutritional information on packaging of their products. In this way the company shows that at any time they are concerned about consumers’ thoughts and feelings to ensure needs of their clients. My recent research surprised me a bit as I was shocked how much Australia does for environment and takes care about “ethic” consumers. Packaging Council of Australia even adopted Code of Ethics and Business Conduct which is considered to be contributive for future policies of the market participants and their attitude to damaging character of packaging on the environment3. Alternatively, Australia is one of the parties to WTO Disputes concerning plain packaging in tobacco sphere4. In 2011 Australia adopted plain packaging act with a purpose to govern and regulate production in proper way to ensure increase inresale of tobacco products5. Australian government decided to remove all trademarks and labels from tobacco products which are imported to Australia. In government’s view this law is aimed to protect human life and health by the fact that consumers can not recognize labels. Thus one can not be misleaded by the information which is usually put on the front by manufacturers. In response such countries as Ukraine, Honduras, Indonesia expressed their protest to this law stating that it infringes copyright rights and that this law is illegal per se. At the same time, New Zealand supported Australia in realization of this policy and grounds on WHO reports in which the organization recommends to reduce packaging materials on the products to the minimal level. Up until now the case is pending on the consideration before the Panel, but from my own point of view, Australian act should be regarded as lawful one as the benefits obtained by consumers are higher than possible damage to the producers’ welfare. Packaging effect and impact on environment and ethical behavior is nevertheless controversial topic. Packaging itself implies that there are some ethical implications that may cause threat to person’s morality6. First of all, the problem with respect to label information arises. Different producers may use information put on the products to mislead consumers with incorrect information. Such misleading information may relate to products’ ingredients or products itself. For example, company can sell broad range of products with the same essence under different title. Another issue of ethical behavior touches packaging graphics. Some manufacturers can make the product to look nice and attractive to force customer to buy this product. However, when customer unpacks the product, the good inside does not correlate with picture on the front cover. In addition, many brands are trying to copy each other through packaging graphics. Thus, customers are becoming misleaded by this package. Similarly, majority of people do care nowadays about safety packaging and its impact on children’s health. Therefore, everyone is trying to avoid products with high content of chemicals. Despite abovementioned issues concerning packaging, I consider that both negative and positive effects should be addressed. Attention of consumers is usually turned towards packaging of ordinary goods, and only few people know that packaging can bring positive consequences on environment. Positive effects lie in the fact that goods are usually delivered safe and sound to the consumer, preserving the initial value of the product and its ingredients due to this special packaging. By this fact, the natural resources also become preserved, as the product is not wasted7.. Consequently, packaging plays role of intermediary between consumer and manufacturer as it delivers special message from one side to another. For example, Apple tells its customers via their slogan: “Think different”, what means that if they purchase this product it can help them be differ and be special. Nevertheless, customers like such messages and do appreciate direct approach to them by the producers of the goods. Among other benefits, consumers identify the following positive effect of packaging: Safety of goods; Provision of important product on labels; Protection of the food; Extension the life of the product8. Packaging cannot be separated from its contents so the producers of the goods and consumers should be aware that they should care about both products and packaging. In addition, packaging is strongly influenced by social, political preferences and different economic effects in the state. Some companies even try to use packaging as the effective tool in competition between the market participants. For example, one video on Procter&Gamble activity was recently found in Internet. It shows how millions of pampers are flowing in the open space and envelop the Earth around it. Company didn’t provide any comment on this video, but millions of people have already seen the video and clearly understood that to some extent this video provides truthful facts: Procter&Gamble does not care about environmental side of its products. Their products can not be recycled in any case. To one’s regret, turnover of the company in 2012 has slightly decreased. Among other benefits of packaging for the consumers, one may identify the following: Information function: packaging can provide information to a consumer regarding the product contents. This information may be promotional, factual or mandated by consumer law; Containment function: Products that contain multiple items use packaging to keep all items contained prior to purchase. Product containment also allows a product to be sold in larger quantities; Size and Quantity function: Packaging can control the size and quantity of a product. Portion control helps control inventory, create product consistency and can help regulate prices; Marketing function: Packaging is the front line of marketing. Through design and marketing communications, packages can help sell a product and differentiate it from similar products. The packaging can also help promote product branding. Actually, consumer awareness of environmental issues and new material developments are the most important drivers in the development of sustainable packaging. It is really easy to criticize and find negative effects of any event or product, but extremely hard to define what can solve the issue. At this moment, from my personal point of view, the producers should concentrate on preventing misleading packaging. It is important for consumers to know what every person purchases. No one wishes to be manipulated so that if a customer once bought a product based on labeling in which the producer asserts that this product is safe and healthy, it means that customer trusts this labeling. If this trust is undermined, the customer will never buy this product again. The packaging industry cannot help but become the sustainability focal point and primary benchmark for other industries. Not only is packaging a resource-intensive sector in an increasingly resource-constrained world, but tons of packaging waste are ending up in landfills daily. However, this challenge provides an opportunity to gain a competitive advantage through the development of a sustainability strategy without sacrificing consumer needs.  Making packaging friendly to the environment often conflicts with the traditional functions of packaging and more specifically with the consumers demands for convenience. To understand the impact of this important trend, the Pira study explores the market for sustainable packaging and the conflict between the convenience and the environment. The research identifies a range of important factors that suggest a greater interest in the sustainability agenda by the business world. Other factors, however, drive the consumers choice when it comes to making a buying decision.  For consumers, packaging represents convenience, safety and comfort. For businesses, packaging represents profits and survival. The gap between consumers ethical attitude and their purchasing decisions concerning ecological products is important to the packaging industry.  Packaging producers and consumers often judge environmental friendliness from different information sources, so there are numerous opportunities for discrepancy. A unified vision of sustainable packaging that both the industry and consumers can agree upon is needed. New packaging designs using environmentally friendly materials and processes are important to the concept of sustainability, but protecting the product from damage or spoilage may have a far greater environmental impact.  As to innovative steps concerning ethics in packaging, I consider that manufacturers should undertake more specific advertisement in which some scientific evidence is also presented, e.g. WHO analysis or reports of other organizations. In addition, based on Australian experience, some countries may draft own policy on packaging and adopt different laws which will set forth some requirement on food packaging and tolerant advertising. Alternatively, I think some organization should be established on national and international level which will closely cooperate with Competition authorities and define in which way it is better to recycle packaging and what materials should be used for goods packaging. To conclude this brief research, packaging and its impact on environment has not been noticed now, but certainly at this moment human race should take steps to prevent threat by deepening positive effects of packaging and reducing negative ones. BIBLIOGRAPHY 1. Australia – Certain Measures Concerning Trademarks, Geographical Indications and Other Plain Packaging Requirements Applicable to Tobacco Products and Packaging. (2012, 04). Retrieved 04, 2014 from http://www.wto.org/english/tratop_e/dispu_e/cases_e/ds435_e.htm. 2. Code of Ethics and Business Conduct. (2012, 01). Retrieved 04, 2014, from http://www.pca.org.ua/documents/codeofethics_web.pdf. 3. Consumer attitudes to Food Waste and Food Packaging. (2013, March). Retrieved 04, 2014, from http://www.wrap.org.uk/sits/wrap/Report%20-%20Consumer%20attitudes%20to%20ffod%20waste%20%and%20packaging_0.pdf. 4. Ethical foods. International situation assessment, opportunities and threat. (2012, 02). Retrieved 04, 2014, from http://rirdc.infoservices.com.au/downoads/11-147. 5. Ethics in Food Labeling and Packaging. (2012, 11). Retrieved 04, 2014, from http://studymode.com/essays/Ethics-In-Food-Labeling-And-Packaging-1270576.html. 6. Food miles in Australia: A preliminary study of Melbourne, Victoria.(2007, 07). Retrieved 04,2014, from http://sustainabilitydev.ceres.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2013/04/1749-CERES_Food_Mile_Report_2008.pdf. 7. Tobacco Plain Packaging Act 2011. (2011, 12). Retrieved 04, 2014, from http://www.comlaw.gov.ua/Details/C2011A00148. Read More