Putting Packaging in Perspective

We produce 20 times more plastic today than we did 50 years ago. Plastic takes up to 400 years to break down in a landfill (Symphony Environmental 2005)
Plastic packaging accounts for 20% of the weight of all packaging and 53% of all goods are packaged in plastics. Because of its low weight and relative strength, plastic is one of the most energy efficient, robust and economic delivery methods available.
Most families throw away about 40Kgs of plastic a year. More than 80% of plastic is used once and then thrown away into landfill; 8% is incinerated and 7% is recycled (Symphony Environmental 2005)
The ready meals market forms a part of the chilled and frozen foods sector. The market has developed considerably, showing an overall 14.4% growth in the UK from 2001-2006 (Ready Meals Market Report Plus 2006, Research and Markets).
This has brought a higher demand for dual functions of packaging for convenience foods, i.e. it must protect the food in the distribution supply chain and preserve the meal in the freezer or refrigerator. Dual Ovenable packs are also convenient for consumers (PIRA International 2004)
There is less product waste across the supply chain for a ready meal than there is for a meal prepared by the consumer in the home. For the ready meal, the preparation waste is reused and the distribution waste is less than 1%. For the meal made at home, 10-20% of ingredients are wasted. The pack, product and preparation waste must all be transported, and the preparation waste is also discarded in the home (INSPEN 2004).
Each year we produce 100 million tonnes of waste from households, commerce and industry in the UK. Less than 10% of that waste is packaging, and packaging only makes up 3% of total landfill waste in the UK (DEFRA).

The process of making paper bags causes 70% more atmospheric pollution than plastic bags. They use 300% more energy to produce and the process uses huge amounts of water and creates very unpleasant organic waste. It also takes more trucks to deliver the same number of bags as plastic bags, creating many times more transport pollution and road congestion (Symphony Environmental 2005)
The UK uses approx. 1.5 million tonnes of polythene packaging a year, yet there is only the capacity to deal with 250,000 tonnes of it (Symphony Environmental 2005)
There is more food packaging in our homes today than ever before. This is because of the food we consume, as a reflection of our changing lifestyles and expectations as consumers (PIRA International 2004)
Plastic Packaging is one of the main contributors to the development and success of supermarkets, resulting in quality foods as reasonable prices
Where there is not a developed packaging infrastructure, over 70% of food goes off before it reaches the consumer
Dependence of oil based flexible films is getting harder. 8% of oil is converted into plastics. Oil has increased in price by 500% since the 1990's. Therefore the finite level of fossil fuels results in a new dependence for biodegradable packaging solutions. Click here to see our AlertCorn+® application
EU legislation aims to progressively remove the biodegradable element from landfill and direct it to composting facilities (Biodegradable Municipal Waste to reduce to 35% of 1995 level by 2016) (www.Europa.eu )