When it comes to making efforts to run a greener business, the type of product packaging you choose can make a big difference. Even though plastic is a convenient type of packaging often used to keep food fresh and hygienic, it can seriously harm our environment without the right recycling practices.

Depending on the type of product you need to package, choosing paper packaging instead of plastic packaging can make a lot of sense. Paper packaging can be a more affordable eco packaging choice, while being gentler on our beautiful planet as well.

Check out these 6 advantages of paper packaging and materials:

Advantage #1: Paper is easy to recycle

Most types of paper are recyclable, which translates well for your paper packaging. When consumers place the packaging in a recycling bin instead of in a garbage can, it will be recycled and turned into new paper.

The best part is that paper can be recycled endlessly without losing any of its qualities. It can be recycled again and again, which means that less trees will need to be cut down to become new paper. Your paper packaging can even be made from recycled paper from the start, making it a truly eco-friendly choice.

Advantage #2: Paper is a renewable resource

Paper packaging can be manufactured from recycled paper products. Even when trees must be cut down to create new paper, we can consider that paper comes from a renewable resource.

Unlike oil or minerals, trees don’t disappear forever after they have been harvested. Every time a tree is cut down, a new one can be planted. This cycle will go on for as long as people will be committed to taking good care of our planet. In fact, forests can be managed in a sustainable manner, especially since they can regenerate themselves over time.

Advantage #3: Paper packaging has a small carbon footprint

If we compare paper packaging with other types of packaging, we can see that paper has a small carbon footprint. As they grow, trees take in water and carbon dioxide, produce energy with it, and release oxygen. When a tree is cut down, the carbon dioxide that got trapped in it stays trapped in the paper instead of being released in the air.

When paper gets recycled, this carbon dioxide should stay trapped in it. In that sense, producing, using, and recycling paper packaging helps the environment by reducing our carbon footprint.

Advantage #4: Paper packaging can decompose quickly

Plastic packaging can take hundreds of years to decompose if it ends up in a landfill. If this type of packaging ends up in the ocean, it will harm marine animals as it slowly breaks down. If paper ends up in a landfill, however, it should take up to one month to decompose.

Paper can even be used to produce compostable packaging that is designed to degrade quickly, without doing any harm to the environment. Consumers who produce compost at home can efficiently dispose of this type of eco-friendly packaging in their compost pile. If compostable paper packaging ends up in a landfill, it will still degrade faster than plastic packaging.

Advantage #5: New types of paper-based packaging are being developed

Of course, paper packaging can’t be used to package liquids. Or can it?

Paper packaging keeps improving, and innovations are making it even more efficient. It’s possible to replace plastic or glass bottles with paper bottles. Plus, flexible paper bags can be used to protect different types of food, not just dry ingredients. As paper-based packaging keep evolving, they will be able to keep food fresh and hygienic as well as plastic packaging does.

Advantage #6: Beautiful designs can easily be printed on paper packaging

When you choose paper packaging for your products, it’s easy to customize the packaging with beautiful, colourful designs. Printing often looks a lot better on paper than it does on plastic.

Your packaging can have a more natural or modern look with minimal printing, or it can feature vibrant colours for a fun and dynamic feel. To create paper packaging for a luxury product, you can add a touch of metallic foil that will instantly enhance your design.

If you produce paper packaging so stylish, your customers may even want to reuse it for different purposes. Think about the possibility of your eco-friendly packaging acting as a long-lasting marketing tool for your business!