Food packaging reduction and development of green packaging

Since the industrial revolution, global temperatures have risen due to the emission of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases (such as sulfur dioxide, carbon monoxide, methane, and nitrogen oxides) from the industrial countries to the atmosphere. Global warming has triggered a series of disastrous consequences such as the melting of icebergs, rising sea levels, endangering biological species, droughts, floods, tsunamis, and snowstorms. Greenland, Maldives, Tuvalu, Great Barrier Reef, and Indonesian islands have risen due to sea level rise. The risk of sinking is facing; China is also directly affected by climate variability, such as the 2008 snow and ice disaster. In 2009, the worst drought in 50 years in some areas, and rare heavy snowstorms in northern China in early 2010, while in the south Extreme droughts have occurred in the region.

In recent years, due to rapid economic development and rapid growth, China’s carbon dioxide emissions have been one of the largest in the world and account for 20% of the total carbon emissions in the world. Therefore, the task of reducing emissions is heavy and the responsibility is high; The indicator that annual CO2 emissions per unit of GDP fell by 40% to 45% compared with 2005, all industries face great environmental pressure while developing their economies. They must earnestly seek a “carbon footprint” and take effective measures to reduce emissions.

The "carbon footprint" of food packaging

Food packaging accounts for 70% of total product packaging, covering paper, plastic, glass, and metal packaging. They can all seek carbon footprints from their energy and resource consumption. For example, corrugated paper boxes, which are commonly used in food packaging, are manufactured through the manufacturing process (including the processes of making, pressing, gluing, drying, and slitting, printing and die-cutting processes, and sticking boxes. And life cycle assessment conducted in a packaged box process) and found that the impacts on the environment are mainly fossil energy consumption, global warming, acidification, and eutrophication; among various environmental impacts, the consumption of fossil energy is mainly the various production processes. China’s use of electricity and coal; global warming and acidification are mainly the use of coal-fired electricity to generate electricity, and the use of coal in the process of making plastics, squeezing, and bonding. As a result, eutrophication is caused by the discharge of the starch-based glue machine washing water and the printing machine washing water; the power consumption of the plate-making process accounts for more than 50% of the total electricity consumption, resulting in fossil energy consumption and global warming. The impact also accounts for 77% of the total impact. Based on the above analysis, there are two “carbon footprints” that can be found in corrugated cartons: one is indirect, that is, the more electricity is used to generate electricity from coal, the more carbon dioxide is indirectly emitted; the other is direct. In the production process, coal is produced by burning coal as energy.

Restricting carbon emissions may create new green trade barriers for packaging

The United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, the Kyoto Protocol, and the Copenhagen Accord have all proposed the goal of addressing climate change one after another. China has taken the lead in developing countries to respond to climate change and have binding carbon dioxide emission reduction targets. Undoubtedly increased environmental management pressure for all companies, including packaging companies.

In order to supervise the energy saving and emission reduction of domestic enterprises and people, some countries have adopted carbon emission regulations in accordance with the established carbon emission reduction regulations; currently there are indications that this carbon emission tax may be used for foreign trade, and carbon is used to collect carbon in the name of low carbon. The purpose of "tariffs" is to protect the competitiveness of domestic enterprises. If they do, they will form new green trade barriers that hinder international trade. This is worthy of our country's food packaging companies to be vigilant and eager to respond.

Green packaging is the main way to reduce carbon emissions from packaging

According to the “carbon footprint” analysis of food packaging, the carbon emissions from food packaging are mainly caused by the use of electricity in energy sources and the use of coal in production; vigorously developing “reduction, recycling and recycling in the entire life cycle” "Green packaging that does not harm the human body and ecology is the main way to solve this problem.
3.3.1 Vigorously implement energy and resource reduction Carbon reduction requires green packaging to prominently reduce emissions of carbon and sulfur, and track down the causes. It should be implemented mainly through reduction of energy and resources: through process energy conservation, equipment energy conservation, and fuel oil use. Boilers replace coal-fired boilers and recycle the process water to reduce energy consumption. By optimizing the design and process, the consumption of product resources is reduced. For example, reducing the remaining amount of corrugated cardboard boxes from 15% to 10% can reduce the weight of paperboard materials by 25g. /m2, can directly save resources and energy, reduce carbon emissions. Food packaging companies have great potential for this.

The vigorous use of raw material paper packaging that is conducive to carbon reduction has shown an upward trend in the application of food packaging, especially flexible packaging. At present, there are a large number of non-wood pulp in China's paper packaging, with nearly 10 million, accounting for 80 non-wood pulp in the world. % to 90%. The raw materials of these non-wood pulps are agricultural wastes such as rice straw and wheat straw. All these agricultural wastes are burned and converted into carbon dioxide; if these agricultural wastes are used for pulp production and packaging, at least half of the carbon dioxide emissions will be reduced. At the same time, it also saved a lot of ecologically protected forest resources. The use of non-wood pulp to make paper packaging is a major contribution of China's packaging industry to reducing carbon emissions.

Encouraging recycling of packaging waste Recycling of recycling packaging waste Recycling of recycling packaging waste not only makes up for the insufficiency of waste resources such as scrap steel and waste paper in China, but also directly reduces energy consumption and carbon emissions: recycling waste paper making Compared with wood pulping, pulp can save energy and water resources by 50% to 70%. Recycling waste plastics makes packaging containers more efficient than resins. New packaging saves energy by 85% to 96%; recycling of aluminum two-piece cans is more efficient than mining of aluminum-vanadium ore The new cans can save energy by 95%. Recycling scrap iron drums and glass containers to make new packaging also saves energy by 50% to 75% compared to the production of iron ore and quartz sand packaging.

Introducing carbon emissions trading and accumulating carbon sinks is an important way to reduce carbon emissions from packaging

The "Kyoto Protocol" stipulates that: In order to deal with climate change, developed countries should take the lead in emission reduction, and developing countries should not have to implement compulsory emission reduction (ie, the principle of "common but differentiated"). Developed countries must use carbon dioxide, sulfur dioxide and other five greenhouses from 2008 to 2012. The level of gas emissions decreased by an average of 5.2% on the basis of 1990. However, the cost of emission reductions by developed countries on an existing basis is 5 to 20 times higher than that of developing countries. Therefore, it is difficult for China’s own emission reduction capacity to meet the targets set by the Kyoto Protocol. Therefore, the Kyoto Protocol also stipulates The state can implement environmental protection projects in developing countries that do not have emission reduction targets through financial aid and technology transfer, and fulfill emission reduction obligations by purchasing certified emission reductions. The market operation mechanism formed by this method is called the Clean Development Mechanism, which has resulted in the carbon emissions trading (carbon sink) market.

There are many ways to import and sell carbon emissions trading, carbon savings, and carbon sinks:

Afforestation: Forest photosynthesis can absorb a large amount of fixed carbon and reduce carbon emissions. Although the quantification of planted forest carbon is much lower than that of the original forest, as long as the accumulation volume is increased and the biological diversity is taken care of, the plantation forest is also a good carrier for carbon fixation. At present, some provinces and cities in China have reduced carbon emissions through afforestation and conducted forest carbon trading with buyers. China Green Carbon Foundation determines that the absorption index per ton of carbon dioxide can be sold for 178 yuan. Chongqing Forest Engineering plans to build 55 million mu of forest and absorb 27.5 million tons of carbon dioxide each year.

Development of Wood Packaging: At the Copenhagen conference, the Brazilian government has launched a plan to reduce carbon emissions by cutting down and destroying forests to ensure the sustainable development of forests. China's many years of development have made remarkable achievements in bamboo, paper, and plastic wood for food transportation packaging, and may become a form of carbon sink in the future.

The introduction of advanced technologies from developed countries for technological transformation, elimination of high-energy-consuming equipment and backward production capacity, and the sale of certified carbon reductions to each other are also mutually beneficial carbon sinks.

Carbon emission reduction is a common obligation that humans must undertake to cope with global climate change, and the food packaging industry should also take responsibility for this. By analyzing the “carbon footprint” of food packaging and responding to possible new green trade barriers, the development of green packaging should be the main approach for carbon reduction in the food packaging industry, and the introduction of carbon emissions trading and carbon savings are the food packaging industry. Another important way to reduce carbon emissions.