CorpComms Magazine

Glass manufacturer O-I has introduced what it claims to be the most comprehensive life cycle analysis of the raw materials used in packaging.

The cradle-to-cradle lifecycle assessment is designed to compare the ease of recycling different products and materials. Researchers charted the progress of a 335ml glass container from extracting the raw materials through to manufacturing, transportation and finally reuse or recycling. They then performed the same assessment for aluminium and PET.

The study produced carbon footprint assessments for four different regions - North and Latin America, Western Europe and Asia-Pacific. Researchers found that less carbon dioxide (CO²) was used in the lifecycle of glass than that of aluminium or PET in Western Europe and North America and glass was in joint first place with aluminium in Latin America and with PET in Asia-Pacific.

Al Stroucken, chief executive of O-I, argued that the variety of different life cycle assessments currently in use had made it impossible to compare the sustainability of packaging materials and was potentially misguiding consumers. 'Many assessments used today only take into account a portion of the full lifecycle of a product, resulting in incomplete and inaccurate data. Customers are sometimes unknowingly making packaging decisions based on incomplete data.'

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