The rise of eCommerce, fueled by digitalization and advanced technology integration in the supply chain, has transformed businesses and significantly impacted consumer consciousness. This shift has made consumers more assertive, independent, and knowledgeable about the environment, necessitating a paradigm shift toward sustainability.

Market research and studies have revealed a significant trend: nearly fifty percent of US consumers now favor eco-friendly eCommerce packaging. This preference is so strong that consumers are willing to pay a premium for biodegradable shipping materials, even during peak sales. The urgency to meet this demand is apparent: the time to adopt sustainable packaging solutions is now.

Reasons for Energy-efficient Packaging Solutions

As mentioned above, consumers prefer plastic-free shipping solutions and are likelier to shop from stores that do not use plastic as packaging material. Surveys also highlighted that most plastics do not go for reuse or recycling and stay in landfills for many years, leading to health hazards and environmental threats.

Compostable packaging solutions have considerably lower carbon footprints. They are made of recycled materials such as cardboard or paper and biodegradable materials that can be broken into smaller molecules—eco-friendly particles—that can be recycled, reused, reduced, repurposed, and refused. The use of environmentally safe packaging can also benefit businesses.

eCommerce is the most significant contributor to packaging waste, so to win the hearts of consumers, businesses must adhere to the norms of eco-conscious packaging supplies. Businesses should never forget that consumers are alert and conscious about stores using sustainable packaging; they make enough inquiries before final purchase. So, some of the palpable benefits of adopting reusable eCommerce packaging are—

• Lowers impact on the environment
• Improves brand reputation
• Minimizes shipping costs, as packaging materials get lighter and much smaller in size
• Initial cost may be high, but it gives long-term benefits
• Builds a happy customer base; they are happy to realize eCommerce has waste-free packaging alternatives.

Tips for Ethical Packaging Practices

Online shoppers are more inclined to shop from eCommerce stores adopting sustainable packaging. There has been an unbelievable rise in the search for stores using eco-friendly packaging; the count has approximately reached 71%. A product goes through various stages of development during manufacturing, and each stage might require different packaging. Choosing low-impact packaging options is the responsibility of the management to lower the carbon impact on the environment. To go green, a company should be aware of the carbon count it releases into the air and, accordingly, decide upon renewable packaging resources. Here, we share a few pointers that can help determine sustainable packaging solutions for eCommerce businesses.

• Shrink the size of the packaging
• Go for sustainable adhesives
• Find out the carbon footprint of a product
• Use recycled or renewable raw materials or plastics
• Use of sustainable fillers
• Encourage virtual sampling to reduce usage and wastage
• Packaging storage optimization
• Reduce fuel emissions by opting for economy delivery than going for express
• Promote the product by showing ways for repurposing
• Give options for reuse, and return or refill

These are probable ways to reduce carbon footprint and gain a competitive edge, especially for online businesses.

Sustainable Packaging Innovations for eCommerce Businesses

Minimizing carbon footprint is not a choice. To save and protect the environment for future generations, switching to waste-free packaging alternatives should be a mandate at the personal and industrial levels. For online, offline, or omnichannel sales, online stores must closely monitor and adopt biodegradable, reusable, recyclable, or compostable packaging solutions. Here, we have attempted to look closer at the climate-friendly packaging options that can quickly break into smaller molecules and return to Earth rather than going into a landfill.

1. Plant-based Packaging Materials—Several eCommerce online stores are considering plant-based packaging materials, which are more sustainable, more accepted, and have better consumer responses. Bioplastics, cellulose, mushroom mycelium, seaweed, sugarcane bagasse, or coconut husk are ideal eco-packaging materials for small businesses. Also, these can be labeled, traced, and tracked to ensure efficiency in the supply chain. The benefits of switching to biodegradable packaging materials are—cost-efficiency, enhanced brand reputation, non-toxic, boost sales, and reduced carbon footprint.

2. Renewable Packaging Materials—Green packaging for online businesses will ensure there is no ill-will toward online products, which are infamous for increasing the level of wastage and landfills. Paper, wool, paperboard, cardboard, aluminum, glass, corrugated materials, and flexible plastic packaging are examples of renewable and sustainable packaging materials. These are either biodegradable or can be reused, recycled, or refurbished.

3. Eco-responsible Shipping Materials—Customers’ preference for eco-friendly delivery is becoming more acceptable. Customers believe that recyclable packaging for online stores reduces the environment’s impact and can reduce carbon footprint. Compostable packaging solutions such as bio-poly materials, eco-color or sustainable taping materials, biodegradable containers, kraft boxes, or plant-based containers for food are preferred. Corrugated cardboard or air fillers can be used as sustainable alternatives for fillers. So, eco-responsible shipping materials include tapes, fillers, and the packaging materials used to secure a product.

4. Reusable Packaging Materials—Green packaging is a good choice for online businesses for brand image and promotion purposes. Small businesses retailing through eCommerce can use reusable packaging materials with their logo for brand popularity. For example, bags or containers can be used for packaging. Good-quality bags are reused, and this helps in promotion, too. Even glass and metal can be used for food products, which have reuse value like old days.

5. Minimize the Packaging Size—Lightweight and small packaging are easy to manage, and shipping costs are also low.