Being someone who:
a) lives with a vegetarian
b) works closely with the design industry
c) buys a lot of organic items on a weekly basis
I have to say how surprised I am that:
a) the organic movement has taken off the way it has
b) many organic foods I see are still sold in non-recyclable containers
I always thought that if the organic/green movement grabbed hold, it would follow that many of the companies selling these organic items to consumers would naturally (ha!) choose recyclable materials to package their products. But that doesn't seem to be the case, especially in the organic food aisle. Baby carrots, bagged lettuce, broccoli, cauliflower, onions, garlic, etc. all shipped and sold in non-recyclable plastic bags.
And yes, I cringe every time I crumple one up and throw it away. (Thanks, Olivia.)
According to the "one of the world's leading authorities on plastic pollution," Dr. Anthony Andrady, Sr. Research Scientist at North Carolina's Research Triangle, "Except for a small amount that's been incinerated, every bit of plastic manufactured in the world for the last 50 years or so still remains. It's somewhere in the environment."
That figure might not be so scary until you realize we only started making plastic 50 years ago.
Anthony is, I believe, one of the people who has been talking about the island of plastic the size of Texas (yes that Texas), floating in the South Pacific.
I'm not sure what the disconnect is, quite, and maybe any of you Packaging Designers can enlighten me - why would a company that sells organic produce not think about the waste generated by their packaging?
I don't think it's cost. It doesn't take a business whiz to figure out that the people who buy organic foods are willing to spend a lot more for their food products - a couple pennies more on packaging wouldn't make or break the sale.
A few years ago, I got to see Chris Hacker, former Creative Director for the ultra-eco company Aveda, and to see some of the amazing, creative (and yes, outside the plastic bag/box) thinking his team was coming up with for packaging their products.
Maybe, like organic farmers themselves, it will just take a few rugged companies to be brave enough to set the standard for selling their produce, start the revolution, and have everyone else follow in their green tracks.
Otherwise, I'm afraid that track is now heading toward a giant floating island of polymers floating somewhere in the Pacific.
(Recycled milk crate image by SOCIALisBETTER)
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