Charlotte Price
Divisional Head of Sustainability, Bunzl
James Pitcher
Group Head of Sustainability, Bunzl
In the drive to create more sustainable packaging, inclusivity can be forgotten. Yet packaging can be made easy to use — and still be better for the environment.
Charlotte Price, Divisional Head of Sustainability, Bunzl, has a clear and concise definition of the term ‘accessible packaging.’
“Essentially, it’s packaging that’s designed with inclusion in mind so that everyone can access products easily,” she says. “It’s easy to open, designed intuitively and safe to handle. For example, contents won’t spill easily when opened, and it presents information clearly and legibly.
The problem is that packaging accessibility can be neglected in packaging sustainability. “Companies are designing packaging — as they should — to be more material efficient and carbon efficient,” says Price. “But there’s a risk that they take it too far and create packaging that’s too small and difficult to use.”
We’ve all encountered packaging that isn’t accessible, says James Pitcher, Bunzl’s Group Head of Sustainability.
Take vacuum-sealed beef. Minimising beef packaging — or ‘lightweighting’ — admirably reduces waste. But you may need sharp tools to open it, which is challenging for some consumers.
Accessibility seen as ‘extra’ rather than ‘essential’
“Accessibility shouldn’t be a nice-to-have, but fundamental to design. And actually, if you design for the margins, you’re designing for everybody, making it more accessible,” says Pitcher.
The irony is that some sustainable designs or materials — however well-intentioned — can generate more waste. “For instance, if you peel a film lid off a tray, but it doesn’t come off entirely, it gets messy,” says Pitcher.
“Bits of it end up in the bin instead of being washed and going into the recycling. But if you make it easy for people to recycle, they will. And that’s as much about accessibility as about the materials you use.”
Well-designed and easy-to-open packaging can also improve the customer experience and promote customer loyalty. “People are more likely to buy your product again if they find it easy to use,” says Pitcher.
Essentially, it’s packaging that’s designed
with inclusion in mind so that everyone
can access products easily.
Better design, not more material
So why isn’t packaging always designed with accessibility in mind? It could be a lack of awareness, a perception that it costs more or a lack of knowledge about how to apply the principles consistently. Also, accessibility is too often seen as ‘an extra’ rather than ‘an essential.’
“Plus, sustainability, design and procurement teams can have their own priorities instead of seeing the whole picture,” says Price. “We bring inclusion and sustainability to life through real-world examples and show how accessible packaging can become part and parcel of the design process.”
