Tea packaging and sustainability

Global food and beverage packaging market is growing steadily owing to a continuous growth in demand for convenience packaging options by customers. Tea market is one of the most competitive and grueling markets regarding both the product as well as packaging. Packaging in the tea industry plays in a key role in the customer buying journey, as attractiveness is vital. Along side this, manufacturers are also focused on driving an agenda of sustainable packaging to reduce cost as well as become environmentally friendly. Another facet that plays a prominent role in tea packaging is the demand from the consumer to get hold of packaged tea that can keep the freshness and flavor of tea.

Accordingly my article today is to showcase that sustainable packaging along with environmental care has a big potential for the future. Unlike yester-years, the new generation consumer’s choice in brand is build up with transparent practices. This means the consumer is expecting the tea brands to have a positive impact on the environment, and be transparent about it. According to a study done by Nielsen it is noted that 66% of consumers are willing to pay extra for sustainable goods while 51% of millennials check the packaging for messages related to sustainability of the product. This means that tea manufacturers will need to use recognizable logos and certifications in their packaging to connect with their customers, example - Eco label, to ensure that they build a connection with the consumer, thereby strengthen brand equity.

Another important factor that tea manufacturers will need to keep in mind for the future is being plastic free. Becoming plastic free is good for the consumer as well as the earth in general as only 30% of the plastic that enters this earth is recycled while the balance is usually ended up in the oceans. Tea manufacturers from around the world will be expected to find alternative ways to the traditional packaging of teas. One of the greatest potential for the tea bag packaging market will lie in PLA - where it is a compostable material that used for more sustainable packaging.

Since this was one of the key areas that is vital for the sustainability of the industry, Tecpacking proactively introduced “Eco Mesh” - which is PLA mesh that is TUV certified and is biodegradable. These are initiatives that are required from industry veterans in order to shape the industry for the better.

The future in the tea packaging industry in my view will be “sustainability”. The tea manufacturers and packaging companies will need to come up with innovative solutions that are plant derived and organic. It will be essential to have compostable and biodegradable material with the guarantee that the tea consumed will have minimum environmental impact.