New Zealand Trade and Enterprise – Te Taurapa Tūhono has released new resources on sustainable packaging for New Zealand exporters, in response to global trends and requirements for businesses to reduce waste and non-renewable material use.
NZTE analysis notes that legislation and targets for sustainable packaging are being toughened in key export markets for New Zealand goods, including Australia, the United States, the EU, China, South Korea and Japan.
New or pending rules overseas include bans on single-use or non-recyclable plastic items, taxes on plastic packaging, requirements for compostable or reusable packaging, and obligations for distributors to take responsibility for packaging after products have been sold.
The National Plastics Actions Plan and other Government measures are also expected to shape packaging decisions for businesses within New Zealand.
NZTE's resources were prepared based on market intelligence from its offices overseas, with further support from industry expert and packaging consultant Nikki Withington.
As well as highlighting changes in overseas markets, the collection includes guides for assessing current packaging, making decisions about materials and waste reduction, and keeping packaging materials in circulation through reuse, repurposing and effective recycling.
The new resources are available via myNZTE for free, with no registration required.
"It's a good time for export businesses to reassess their packaging and get ahead of new requirements in some key trade destinations for New Zealand," says Sanchia Yonge, General Manager for Customer Solutions at NZTE.
"At the same time this is an opportunity to look at a major cost area and find new approaches that can save on materials and energy, which ultimately feeds through to a business's bottom line."
"Exporters need to consider their product and how it gets to market, then find the right approach to protect their goods in the most sustainable way right up to the end consumer," Yonge adds.
"Damaged products are the biggest source of waste in export, so great sustainable packaging for exporters meets performance needs first and then uses the right design, materials and energy to do the job cleanly and efficiently."
The new collection includes insights from Nikki Withington on promoting packaging reuse and recycling by consumers, as well as circular approaches where packaging can be fed back into the business value chain, keeping existing materials in use and slashing waste and emissions.
Circular and sustainable packaging is also a focus area for the new Circular Economy Directory for Aotearoa New Zealand, led by the Sustainable Business Network and supported by NZTE along with the Ministry for the Environment, Waste Management NZ and Āmiomio Aotearoa.
The business-to-business directory will be launched online on 12 April, and businesses that provide products, services or expertise to help others reduce waste or emissions can apply for a listing free of charge until 30 September.
For more information:
New Zealand Trade and Enterprise
Tel.: +64 0800 555 888
nzte.govt.nz