Recyclability “not enough”: Unilever, Dropps and Dr. Bronner unravel household packaging trends

06 Oct 2021 --- The household packaging sector was built on a foundation of single-use consumption. From dishwasher tabs to laundry detergent and cleaning soaps, fossil-based virgin plastic has dominated this segment for the past half-century.

However, in recent years, consumer demand for more environmentally friendly household packaging is pushing the sector to new dimensions.

According to Innova Market Insights, 64% of global shoppers think consumer behavior contributes most to the global plastic pollution crisis, followed by FMCG companies (45%).

In this Special Report, PackagingInsights speaks with household packaging pioneer Dropps about mounting greenwashing concerns. Meanwhile, experts from Unilever and Dr. Bronner’s discuss their strides in lightweighting and post-consumer recyclate (PCR), respectively.

The truth about “zero waste”
In Innova Market Insights’ survey, just over half of global respondents agreed they are willing to pay more for sustainable packaging, and 65% are willing to switch their usual brand for a brand with more sustainable packaging. 

However, the definition of “sustainable” can be interpreted in myriad ways, with 61% of global consumers calling for packaging’s environmental impact to be illustrated as a score or grade. This sentiment is giving rise to a slew of on-pack environmental claims, with “zero waste” gaining particular prominence.

“In our modern world, it’s virtually impossible to truly be ‘zero-waste,’” flags Jonathan Propper, founder and CEO of Dropps.

By choosing low-waste alternatives, consumers can put pressure on leading CPGs to rethink their supply chain.US-based Dropps opts out of conventional plastic bottles, jugs, tubs and pouches by offering dishwasher and laundry detergent in pod format. 

“An organization could produce the most eco-friendly packaging around, but they would inevitably be producing waste in some form or another while doing so – whether from the resources they use in the manufacturing process or even the power they use to run their factories,” says Propper.

Given it is tough to substantiate the claim “zero waste” without a supply chain lifecycle analysis, Dropps prefers to use the term “low waste.” “We feel that it’s more truthful and transparent to our consumers,” he explains.

No greenlight for greenwashing
As environmental sustainability demands intensify, the opportunity and complexity of greenwashing grows. Propper maintains Dropps competes with the major challenge of greenwashing – or misleading information – deriving from rival household packaging companies. 

“These typically smaller industry players want to capitalize on consumer’s increasing interest in purchasing products from brands that actually prioritize the environment’s well-being. Newer brands are typically less aware of the strict Federal Trade Commission (FTC) guidelines around marketing claims, and less likely to substantiate the claims they are making.”

“The direct-to-consumer market has become increasingly saturated with newcomers to the home cleaning space that tend to tout misleading information that tiptoes into consumer greenwashing,” warns Propper.

Here, independently peer-reviewed data and scientific facts from reputable third-party institutes can help to communicate Dropps’ trusted product efficacy and its commitment to environmental protection.

“The plastic pollution problem in the consumer goods industry won’t be solved by complex business models that are inconvenient for consumers,” Propper points out. “Instead, we need to focus on a ground-up approach to redesign the way consumer products are designed, manufactured, and disposed of.” 

Ground-up approach
The “recyclable-by-design” trend is manifesting itself in the household packaging sector, running in parallel with the F&B industry.

“The science is abundantly clear on the need to reduce the amount of plastic we use. We need to drive global innovation of new business models, materials, and technologies to support circularity,” asserts Dr. Colin Kerr, global packaging technology director at Unilever. 

Unilever partnered with social enterprise Algramo in Chile to deliver a refill model to consumers at home and cut out new plastic.“There is no one-size-fits-all solution, which is why a suite of solutions is necessary,” he continues. “We recognize that we need to innovate with better plastic and less plastic, not one or the other, alongside new business models such as reuse and refill, or alternative materials such as metals, paper and glass.” 

Unilever’s multifaceted steps
By 2025, Unilever has pledged to halve the amount of virgin plastic used in its packaging and increase the use of post-consumer recycled plastic to at least 25%. 

“When we do it right, we can drive a high consumer repeat purchase rate,” says Kerr. He highlights Unilever’s OMO Concentrate – similar to Dropps’ no-liquid pods – has seen “huge success.” 

The six-times concentrate is designed to be poured into a standard 3 L OMO bottle to dilute with water at home. The concentrated bottle contains 72% less plastic and 50% PCR.

“We’ve seen 30% of our OMO 3 L bottles consumers shift to the refill at home format and expanded the product to Chile, Argentina and Uruguay and markets in Europe and the Middle East,” Kerr details.

Unilever also developed a paper-based laundry detergent bottle prototype, set to debut in Brazil in 2022 under leading laundry brand OMO, with further rollouts expected.

Closing the loop
Darcy Shiber-Knowles, director of operational sustainability and innovation at Dr. Bronner’s, takes the anti-virgin plastic discussion one step further. “It’s not a good enough credential for household product packaging to only be recyclable.” 

“There is no reason why a household brand should use virgin plastic in their packaging. We all need to make the switch to PCR,” she emphasizes.

Unilever developed a paper-based bottle prototype for its OMO laundry detergent, set to debut in Brazil in 2022.Shiber-Knowles points out fossil fuel companies receive enormous subsidies, while a carbon price is still lacking. “These are just a couple of reasons why virgin, petroleum-based plastic resin is usually much less expensive than PCR material. However, the true, externalized cost to the environment is enormous.”

Dr. Bronner mainly offers products for body care, but its home care portfolio is up-and-coming, with its biodegradable liquid cleaner and liquid and bar soaps.

Post-consumer responsibility
Propper from Dropps says industry-wide moves toward using more PCR or redesigning packaging with less virgin plastic is “music to our ears.” 

“Other industries would consider new brands and products entering into their category as competition and something to avoid. However, our number one goal is the safety for the individuals and families that use our products and safety for the environment. That should be a shared, collective goal for any brand that is looking to adopt a sustainable mission.” 

Price versus perception
Shiber-Knowles from Dr. Bronner’s indicates some brands may assume PCR material would make the product appear less “premium.” 

Dr. Bronner’s gallons and half gallon jugs are “unfortunately” currently virgin HDPE, but will switch to 100% PCR HDPE for both formats in 2022.“But in fact, there is excellent PCR PET available, so in general consumers cannot tell the difference between PCR and virgin PET. Plus, for household cleaners especially, consumers typically store the products inside laundry areas or closed cabinets and closets, so bottle aesthetics may be less important to consumers than product function or environmental impact anyway.” 

Dr. Bronner’s gallons and half-gallon jugs are “unfortunately currently virgin HDPE,” Shiber-Knowles continues. “Years ago, the PCR HDPE resin available was darker than we wanted due to lower collection rates, combined colorants, and contamination in the waste streams. But we are now on track to make the switch to 100% PCR HDPE in 2022 for both packaging formats.” 

“The quality of the resin has improved a bit over time with more demand for recycled content and more recycling infrastructure. But we believe the consumers of our gallons and half gallons may care about value and environmental impact more than aesthetics, or they wouldn’t be buying in larger sizes. We want to honor that value set,” she adds.

Ultimately, recycled plastic packaging is almost always more expensive, Shiber-Knowles acknowledges. Due to supply and demand market shifts and the commodity pricing of recycled materials, it can be up to 50% more expensive. 

“On average for our packaging formats and plastic types, PCR resin tends to be approximately 10% more expensive than virgin resin. It’s worth the investment because it’s the environmentally responsible choice, and our consumers value sustainability,” Shiber-Knowles concludes.

By Anni Schleicher