With the increase and boom of the eCommerce trade, so many goods are shipped all over the world, which means that a lot of packaging is going around the world.
Although packaging ensures that your goods are safe, they are harmful to the environment. Many clients discard the packaging after unwrapping their items. And this means that packaging contributes to our landfills/waste.
Some of the non-eco-friendly (non-bio-degradable) packaging include packing materials like Styrofoam plastic and polythene. These, together with consumer packagings like plastic bottles and soda cans, add more waste to the environment.
Apart from being environmentally non-friendly, packaging contributes to the high cost of goods. So, the sustainable solution is to use recyclable packaging. Making your eCommerce eco-friendly will cut product costs and reduce pollution, increasing environmental sustainability.
Table of Contents
- What is green packaging?
- How NextSmartShip supports green packaging.
- How NextSmartShip supports green logistics
- How NextSmartShip helps you to be sustainable
- Green Packaging FAQs
What is green packaging?
Green packaging is the use of reusable, sustainable, biodegradable, compostable, or environmentally friendly materials to wrap, pack, and ship products.
Green packaging is a way of making eCommerce sustainable. Green packaging also has to do with the recycling and manufacturing techniques that reduce pollution.
Green packaging has become an essential factor in achieving business success. You can trace its roots to the circular economy/business model.
Instead of products being made, used and dumped, or discarded, the circular economy reduces pollution by utilizing recycling. Recycling occurs in different forms, say, through harvesting, reusing, and refurbishing parts, allowing you to use resources for a more extended time without discarding them in the environment.
How NextSmartShip supports green packaging.
There has been a widespread increase in environmental awareness from consumers and brand owners. And this has led to consumers globally shifting their purchase behavior towards being more sustainable. And at the same time, the supply chain sector is adopting green packaging to meet consumer expectations and increase supply chain sustainability and resilience.
To further encourage the conservation of planet earth, in September 2021, NextSmartShip started offering its clients one of the best sustainable packaging solutions known as PackGreen.
PackGreen is a range of sustainably sourced packaging that a business can use to package its products.
These green packaging solutions:
- Are made of green (eco-friendly) materials.
- Have practical designs
- Are affordable. And this has led to more businesses using sustainable packaging as more DTC brands can acquire and use eco-friendly materials for packaging their products.
The PackGreen packaging includes:
- Compostable Express bag: This is a 100% compostable express bag that secures non-fragile products.
- The compostable Bubble Mailer: This is a unique biodegradable and compostable green bubble mailer.
- Shipping box: NextSmartShip supports green packaging by using shipping boxes made of certified recycled paper.
- Compostable zip lock bags: NextSmartShip makes and uses eco-friendly zip lock bags made of corn starch.
- Compostable bubble wrap: This excellent 100% compostable bubble wrap is a good moisture-proof material for home storage.
- Corn starch foam is a material that you put inside (fill) your shipping boxes with. This green material is 100% full burn and full water-soluble and has no harmful pollutants. You can also use it to stuff toys and furniture.
How NextSmartShip supports green logistics
Apart from our PackGreen packaging solution, NextSmartShip has a Carbon offset program.
It is NextSmartShip’s goal to reduce the global carbon footprints. NextSmartShip is using two strategies to achieve its goal of contributing to a carbon-neutral future.
By partnering with EcoCart
In February 2022, NextSmartShip partnered with EcoCart, a global leader in carbon-neutral (sustainable) solutions, to reduce the global carbon footprint of eCommerce businesses. NextSmartShip is taking the responsibility of offsetting on behalf of its customers.
Under this cooperation, NextSmartShip is funding several forestation and preservation projects. It commenced with two rainforests in Sierra Leone and Brazil.
By giving its customers a unique offer
If you use NextSmartShip’s fulfillment services, it will help you fund rainforest conservation projects that counteract your business’ negative environmental impact.
NextSmartShip also has a Green Guardian Badge that you can share to spread awareness for a greener planet. Its Go Green Awareness campaign encourages its clients to build a green image for their staff and pay attention to the environment.
How NextSmartShip helps you to be sustainable
As a direct-to-consumer brand, you can reduce your business’s carbon footprint and build an eco-friendly brand using sustainable ways like green packaging. You can achieve both goals by taking part in both our PackGreen and Carbon Offset programs.
This will enable you to run a successful business while ensuring the continuity of resources for the future generation to use. Joining our programs will not only shade you in a positive light as an eco-friendly brand, but it will also increase brand value as customers are more willing to pay a higher price for sustainable products and services.
Below are other benefits of partnering with NextSmartShip:
- You contribute to the reduction in the global carbon footprint
- You enjoy more storage and space that comes with green packaging
- You provide your customers with allergy and toxin-free packaging
- You register increased sales
- You reduce solid waste, emissions, water, and power wastage.
- Your products become more affordable because of the lightweight packaging that saves on shipping costs.
Our green packing solutions and carbon offset program help DTC brands achieve a higher level of business success and ensure overall success for all the different stakeholders.
Green Packaging FAQs
What is a biodegradable packaging material?
This is a material that microorganisms can break down.
A combination of living organisms like bacteria and fungi and heat and oxygen in the soil break down and disintegrate these materials into their natural elements.
Is the ink in packaging sustainable?
Not all kinds are sustainable. The type of ink you use in labeling your packaging material determines whether the packaging is sustainable. For this reason, many manufacturers have stopped the excessive use of heavy metals like lead that endanger human health and the environment.
Sustainable inks include soy-based and water-based inks.
Why isn’t compostable packaging used for everything?
Although compostable packaging is eco-friendly, it has its limitations. It can face degradation by light and is susceptible to microbial attack. This weakness makes compostable packaging unsafe for food storage/packaging.
It is also sometimes more costly than non-green packaging. Some compostable packaging materials have lower material strength than original polymers. So this means that you have to use more material and resources to achieve the same functionality as conventional polymers.
