Creative improvements in packaging industry

I get this trade magazine called Packaging World, and although I am not a packaging designer I do a reasonable amount of artwork for packaging and labeling, so it's good to keep up to date with trends. What has been fascinating to me as I have read this magazine over the past few years is to watch the behind-the-scenes efforts of the packaging industry to achieve more efficient, cost-effective and sustainable practices, often all at the same time.

A good example is the packaging of Godiva Chocolate. Of course my interest was piqued by an article in Packaging World mentioning my favorite chocs! But the article was extremely interesting as it explained that the packaging of Godiva is being changed, at a 30% cost savings, to a much more sustainable material that will look as good if not better than the foil wrap to which we are accustomed.

The article is concerned mostly with the technical aspect of the new materials being used, but it illustrates the lengths to which the parties involved were willing to go to break new ground without giving an inch on the quality aspect, an integral part of the Godiva brand. And reading through the magazine on a regular basis, I am struck by the creative thinking being done to satisfy a myriad of desires for improvement.

This issue ended with an editorial that I thought was very apt, urging packagers to communicate to their audience how hard they are trying to do better regarding sustainability, etc., at the same time being aware that the general public is very wary of 'greenwashing'. For me, though, it is reading this magazine on a regular basis that has built my confidence in the packaging industry's efforts, rather than any 'new and improved!' sticker added to the graphics.

At this moment I can't really come up with a good way for a company to tell it's audience that its product packaging really is getting better without sounding false. After all, we've heard the phrases and seen the green graphics ad nauseum. Perhaps the packaging industry itself needs to toot its own horn a bit more to the general public to promote awareness? An interesting marketing problem which needs to be solved, in order to convince other businesses to try new and more sustainable concepts.