Industrial and environmental transition
Eco-design of food products and packaging
23
Jan
Published on : 23/01/2025
Pauline Audoye - January 2025
To meet changing consumer expectations and environmental challenges, more and more companies are implementing an eco-design approach in the design or development of their products/processes/packaging. This type of approach involves shedding new light on a product, adding environmental criteria to the decision-making process, alongside other criteria already taken into account, such as cost, technical feasibility, functionality and so on. An eco-designed product or product-packaging pair thus has less environmental impact over its life cycle, while retaining (or even optimizing) its functional, technical and economic qualities.
One of the tools used for this type of approach is the Life Cycle Assessment method. This method, governed by the ISO 14040 to 14044 series of standards, quantifies the environmental impact of a good or service. The advantage of this method is that it is multi-stage (taking into account all stages of the product's life cycle, from the production of raw materials to end-of-life) and multi-criteria (taking into account the impact on all environmental compartments (water, air, soil)). These two main principles help to ensure that impacts are not transferred between stages or environmental compartments following the implementation of an eco-design action on a product or packaging. The aim of this approach is to avoid "false good ideas" which may not ultimately prove beneficial to the environment.
In an eco-design approach, the LCA method is applied:
Based on the environmental profile of the system to be eco-designed, an in-house project team is often mobilized to identify relevant eco-design options for the product. These options are then analyzed in the light of other criteria, such as cost, technical feasibility and consumer expectations. This analysis of eco-design options enables us to select the most relevant actions, which are then subjected to the LCA method, to be compared with the environmental impact of the initial system and to assess the effect on the environmental performance of the system studied.
An example of an eco-design approach might be to increase the size of packaging, to reduce the ratio of quantity of packaging per quantity of packaged product. This type of eco-design approach may, however, lead to a change in consumer behavior, and in particular increase the proportion of wasted product among consumers. There is a risk here of transferring impact between stages (transfer from the packaging stage to the production stage of the raw materials required, which will be more important). Indeed, very often for food products, the environmental impacts linked to the production of raw materials are the most significant (on average 70% of impacts).
Another example of an eco-design approach is the search for the right packaging, in order to minimize the use of superficial packaging materials that do not add functionality to the packaging. This is precisely what the new PPWR (Proposal Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation) is aiming at, by requiring that the weight and volume of packaging be reduced to a minimum, and that this be proven by technical documentation.
BPI co-finances an eco-design diagnosis for companies with fewer than 250 employees. The aim of this diagnostic is to raise the awareness of an in-house project team to this type of eco-design approach, carry out an environmental assessment of a product/packaging pair using the LCA method, draw up an eco-design action plan for this product/packaging pair and prepare for its implementation with an initial technical and economic dimensioning.
The CTCPA is referenced as an expert to help you carry out these BPI Eco-design diagnostics. Eligibility conditions and co-financing rates for each company size are presented here: Diag Ecoconception - Diagnostic Accompagnement Bpifrance
Eco-design of food products andurs packaging
To meet changing consumer expectations and environmental challenges, more and more companies are implementing an eco-design approach in the design or development of their products/processes/packaging. This type of approach involves shedding new light on a product, adding environmental criteria to the decision-making process, alongside other criteria already taken into account, such as cost, technical feasibility, functionality and so on. An eco-designed product or product-packaging pair thus has less environmental impact over its life cycle, while retaining (or even optimizing) its functional, technical and economic qualities.
One of the tools used for this type of approach is the Life Cycle Assessment method. This method, governed by the ISO 14040 to 14044 series of standards, quantifies the environmental impact of a good or service. The advantage of this method is that it is multi-stage (taking into account all stages of the product's life cycle, from the production of raw materials to end-of-life) and multi-criteria (taking into account the impact on all environmental compartments (water, air, soil)). These two main principles help to ensure that impacts are not transferred between stages or environmental compartments following the implementation of an eco-design action on a product or packaging. The aim of this approach is to avoid "false good ideas" which may not ultimately prove beneficial to the environment.
In an eco-design approach, the LCA method is applied:
- the system to be eco-designed (product, product/packaging pair, packaging) in order to obtain its initial environmental profile, i.e. to know the main stages that contribute to its environmental impact
- to the system integrating eco-design actions, in order to compare its impacts with those of the initial system and validate (or not) a better environmental performance of the eco-designed system.
Based on the environmental profile of the system to be eco-designed, an in-house project team is often mobilized to identify relevant eco-design options for the product. These options are then analyzed in the light of other criteria, such as cost, technical feasibility and consumer expectations. This analysis of eco-design options enables us to select the most relevant actions, which are then subjected to the LCA method, to be compared with the environmental impact of the initial system and to assess the effect on the environmental performance of the system studied.
Focus on examples of eco-design approaches applied to the product-packaging pairing
An example of an eco-design approach might be to increase the size of packaging, to reduce the ratio of quantity of packaging per quantity of packaged product. This type of eco-design approach may, however, lead to a change in consumer behavior, and in particular increase the proportion of wasted product among consumers. There is a risk here of transferring impact between stages (transfer from the packaging stage to the production stage of the raw materials required, which will be more important). Indeed, very often for food products, the environmental impacts linked to the production of raw materials are the most significant (on average 70% of impacts).
Another example of an eco-design approach is the search for the right packaging, in order to minimize the use of superficial packaging materials that do not add functionality to the packaging. This is precisely what the new PPWR (Proposal Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation) is aiming at, by requiring that the weight and volume of packaging be reduced to a minimum, and that this be proven by technical documentation.
Funding you can apply for
BPI co-finances an eco-design diagnosis for companies with fewer than 250 employees. The aim of this diagnostic is to raise the awareness of an in-house project team to this type of eco-design approach, carry out an environmental assessment of a product/packaging pair using the LCA method, draw up an eco-design action plan for this product/packaging pair and prepare for its implementation with an initial technical and economic dimensioning.
The CTCPA is referenced as an expert to help you carry out these BPI Eco-design diagnostics. Eligibility conditions and co-financing rates for each company size are presented here: Diag Ecoconception - Diagnostic Accompagnement Bpifrance
