ARLINGTON, Va. — The Global Packaging Project, an effort to establish a common industry language for packaging and sustainability, expects to issue a guidance document in the first quarter of next year, said Anne T. Johnson, program director of the Sustainable Packaging Coalition, during a session Wednesday at the FMI/GMA Sustainability Summit here.
The document will include a suggested set of common definitions, metrics and principles for packaging in the context of sustainability.
The Global Packaging Project, developed under the auspices of the Consumer Goods Forum, Paris, aims to correct the “lack of harmonization” in the industry on packaging metrics related to sustainability, said Johnson. “We needed to create an alphabet of metrics that companies can use to answer business questions,” she said. About 52 metrics have been identified, including recycled content, lifecycle impact, global warming potential, water consumption, waste production, energy usage, among others.
During 2010, project participants, including retailers and CPG companies, piloted the metrics and reported on the results. The final phase is the release next year of the guidance document, which will be available at http://globalpackaging.mycgforum.com/.
