Sustainable Packaging

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What is sustainable packaging?

Memorandum of Understanding with the Mississippi River Cities and Towns Initiative.

Packaging materials are some of the most ubiquitous and easily recognizable items people use in our daily lives. Packaging includes plastic bottles, metal cans, food wrappings, corrugated cardboard boxes and many more materials. Understanding the production and disposal of these materials is crucial in making economic and environmentally conscious decisions.

How does sustainable packaging relate to Sustainable Materials Management?

By applying sustainable materials management principles to this sector, the U.S. can reduce environmental impacts while recovering potentially lost economic revenue. Encouraging the shift in packaging construction towards more lightweight or efficient materials helps companies save money while decreasing the amount of waste generated when the packaging is discarded. Also important is the recovery of the packaging discards; not only is there high commodity value in these items, but recycling keeps these goods out of landfills.