In the highly competitive era of today, manufacturers present their products in excess packaging and supermarkets exhibit them to attract customers, who are often lured by such products. This excessive packaging is detrimental to the environment and so has to be reduced. The issue of debate is whether the onus is on the supermarkets and manufacturers or should the customers say no to products with excess packaging. I believe that a joint effort is needed by all.
Since many people today equate quality with superior packaging, companies would not often take the risk of reducing it for fear of losing their market share. However, branded companies that are already established in the market can experiment with simple covering, without the fear of losing the popularity of their products. It would be a win-win situation for both – the manufacturer and the customer. For example, multinational companies like ‘Colgate’ can successfully give up expensive packaging of their toothpastes with no loss of sales.
Similarly, customers also have a role to play, by showing greater interest towards items in simple packing. As it is the excessive packaging only adds to the trash generated in the homes. If customers start giving preference to materials with little or no packaging, then this would motivate increasing number of producers to pack their products using the minimum packing and that too of biodegradable materials.
On the other hand, sometimes, the amount of packaging indicates the need to ensure the durability, safety and freshness of products. For instance, most instant foods are packed in several layers using expensive materials like aluminum foil and superior plastic, with the purpose of longer shelf life. In such cases, the packaging could be allowed.
To summarise, manufacturers, supermarkets and customers have a collective role in reducing the amount of packaging of products.