Circular Economy Is The Future (Of Booze)

Drinks try to become more sustainable in various ways, such as by replacing glass bottles with paper ones. But this trend will need a proper and wider recycling strategy.

As the global whisky brand Johnnie Walker and its parent company Diageo plan to run a trial of the new environmentally-friendly packaging from next year, a report from consulting corporation Capgemini on sustainability shows this might be the future consumers want.

In particular, more and more people seem to be currently thinking about their economic choices as a result of the pandemic.

Among the 7,500 consumers and 750 large organizations surveyed, 78% said that companies have a larger role to play in society.

Their behavior is changing, too, with 79% of shoppers basing their purchase preferences on social responsibility, inclusiveness, or environmental impact. For example, 53% of consumers overall and 57% of consumers in the 18-24 age group switched to lesser known but sustainable brands.

Among executives, 65% said their consumers are very much aware of their sustainability initiatives. Among consumer products and retail organizations, 75% said they have a strategy, infrastructure, and resources in place to drive sustainability and circular economy efforts.

“So far, many organizations have viewed sustainability as a bolt-on. However, when baked into an organization’s mission and purpose, sustainability has the potential to entirely change an organization’s relationship with its customers and partners,” says Kees Jacobs, vice president of consumer goods and retail at Capgemini.

“The pandemic has heightened global desire for authenticity and responsibility, particularly from large organizations. As businesses focus on transformation in the wake of the pandemic, they should put sustainability at the heart of their efforts.”

In fact, the report highlights that organizations are yet to come to terms with how fundamentally consumer preferences have shifted. Close to half of consumers (49%) said they do not have any information to verify the sustainability claims of products and 44% say they do not trust product sustainability claims.

Preferences for sustainable packaging concern all sectors, not just booze. The European soft drinks industry is already using a range of packaging materials to suit different consumer needs and drinking occasions.

“Driving packaging circularity is a key goal for our members and they have been instrumental in setting up and running packaging collection schemes across Europe,” a spokesperson for UNESDA Soft Drinks Europe says. “UNESDA members have committed to 100% recyclable plastic bottles by 2025 and to at least 25% recycled content by then. They will continue to drive circularity across all their packaging in the coming years working alongside governments, economic actors and consumers.”

However, some claim plastic bottles – more than glass ones – should be replaced. The industry, on the other hand, puts pressure on better recycling strategies.

“We are aware of such moves but caution against substitution, which is not based on life-cycle analysis,” Virginia Janssens, managing director at PlasticsEurope, says. “Plastic brings many benefits but also presents obvious challenges which we are focusing on addressing. Data continually shows that plastics can provide the lowest carbon emissions of any material, particularly when recycled. Substitution could have unintended consequences whether it be the impact of resource extraction or tree felling, or increased carbon emissions from transporting goods. Our members’ focus at the moment remains in addressing challenges around plastics waste and marine litter – ensuring no plastic waste is lost to the environment and plastic plays a part in a low-carbon circular economy”.

Other factors are to be considered. Plastics Recyclers Europe told Forbes: “We believe that choice for packaging has to be driven by its functionality, safety, hygiene and the overall life cycle of product considerations.”

Paper bottles are not necessarily the answer, but circular economy certainly is. “All materials (regardless of the their type) must be collectable and recyclable into high quality secondary raw material that can be used in a wide area of high-end applications,” they added.