Decision-making processes on sustainable packaging options in the European food sector
Visualitza/Obre
Autor/a
Weinrich, Ramona
Mielinger, Ellen
Krauter, Victoria
Arranz, Elena
Camara Hurtado, Rosa Maria
Poças, Fátima
Ruiz de Maya, Salvador
Herbes, Carsten
Data de publicació
2023-11-28ISSN
0959-6526
Resum
Food packaging improves shelf life and allows longer transportation distances in global food supply chains, but it is also responsible for huge volumes of waste. The transition to sustainable packaging by food companies has often been slow and inconsistent. How decisions on (sustainable) packaging are made within companies in the food sector remains mostly opaque to research. To explore the decision-making process and identify barriers for cleaner, more resource efficient food packaging, we carried out 17 interviews in four European countries across different food sectors using the theoretical decision-making process of Nutt (1984) as an analytical framework. Through qualitative content analysis, we found that decision-making processes often lack structure and extend over long stretches of time. Frequently, they are initiated in response to packaging material manufacturers or suppliers. Switching to more sustainable packaging often implies costly investments into new machinery. Economic sustainability takes precedence over ecological sustainability. We recommend companies move to life-cycle cost models for packaging decisions, commit to mono- and other recyclable materials, and establish structured decision-making processes with clear cut-off criteria so as to streamline implementation decisions. Our results further support a call for progressive legislation towards a circular economy in the packaging sector.
Tipus de document
Article
Versió del document
Versió publicada
Llengua
Anglès
Matèries (CDU)
663/664 - Aliments i nutrició. Enologia. Olis. Greixos
Pàgines
12
Publicat per
Elsevier
Publicat a
Journal of Cleaner Production
Citació
Weinrich, Ramona, Ellen Mielinger, Victoria Krauter, Elena Arranz, Rosa Maria Camara Hurtado, Begonya Marcos, and Fátima Poças et al. 2024. “Decision-making processes on sustainable packaging options in the European food sector”. Journal of Cleaner Production, 434. doi:10.1016/j.jclepro.2023.139918.
Número de l'acord de la subvenció
EC/COST/CA19124/EU/Rethinking packaking for circular and sustainable food supply chains of the future/CIRCUL-A-BILITY
Programa
Qualitat i Tecnologia Alimentària
Aquest element apareix en la col·lecció o col·leccions següent(s)
- ARTICLES CIENTÍFICS [2635]
Els següents fitxers sobre la llicència estan associats a aquest element:
Excepte que s'indiqui una altra cosa, la llicència de l'ítem es descriu com http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/