Food tops the bill as the best performer, according to British shoppers, some way ahead of household products in second place. Clothing ranks third, but only among 13% of those surveyed, with cosmetics and fashion accessories scoring very poorly for planet friendly packaging performance.
This is a perception that needs to be tackled by non-food retailers and brands as the research also reveals that over half (56%) of consumers said that they are more likely to purchase a clothing or accessory brand that uses 100% recyclable packaging. Of these, 21% said they are highly likely to choose an item in a fully recyclable package over one that isn’t, and 35% said they are quite likely to do so.
The research also shows that consumers believe that it should be product manufacturers and producers that take the greatest responsibility for improving packaging recycling rates (56%), followed by local authorities (53%) and retailers (49%). With EPR legislation now in force, there may be increased costs to pay for packaging for many UK companies, so choosing the right material now could help reduce costs later and remove the risk of ongoing environmental damage if packaging is not correctly disposed of.
