Amcor
At a Glance
Industry
Consumer Packaged Goods
Project Type
Industrial Energy Efficiency
Year
2021
Location
Shanghai
Summary
Lingrong Jin analyzed challenges and opportunities for the sustainable development of Amcor healthcare flexible packaging.
Goals
Amcor is committed to packaging sustainability by improving the recycling rate of its healthcare flexible packaging. To contribute to its global commitment of making all plastic packaging recyclable by 2025, Amcor enlisted Lingrong Jin to conduct research on international circular economy policies, review current recyclability status and collect survey data on customer perception of recyclable packaging.
Solutions
Lingrong approached the problem from three main aspects:
- Conduct literature review on international circular economy policies, design for recyclability guidelines, and certification systems. After compiling information on international legislations, Lingrong further compared current recycling status and legislation in China with that in Europe and the US.
- Review and analyze current recyclability status of Amcor’s healthcare flexible packaging. Using product structure information and sales data provided by the host, Lingrong calculated the current recyclability ratio for pharmaceutical and medical device packaging. She also did a life cycle analysis comparing the environmental impact of non-recyclable baseline products with recyclable alternatives.
- Collect survey data on customer perception of recyclable packaging. Lingrong designed a survey and collected feedback from Amcor’s customers to evaluate market acceptance of recyclable packaging and identify potential challenges and opportunities.
Potential Impact
Information collected on international circular economy policies and best management practices can be used as guidance for the sustainable development of Amcor healthcare flexible packaging. Recyclability ratio calculation can be used as a benchmark for tracking Amcor’s progress on its way to achieve its 100% recyclability goal by 2025. Finally, the comparative life cycle analysis outcome can be used to market Amcor’s recyclable packaging products to potential customers and the survey data can be used as supporting information to push for new legislation in favor of healthcare packaging sustainability.