Packaging World is the “go to” resource when it comes to news and innovation in that niche. A recent article discusses how Brita Premium Water is the first retailer with a refillable recyclable aluminum bottle and plastic free paperboard carrier both of which are recyclable. Hallelujah!

As a company whose mission is sustainability in the packaging world, we thank Anne Marie Mohan for this article on sustainability. Our hat is off to Brita for finding a practical way to eliminate 1,800 plastic bottles per household per year.

Ms. Mohan goes on to explain that Brita’s retail multipacks use Atlantic Packaging’s fully recyclable Fishbone paperboard carrier. It uses less than half of the material of a paperboard carton. More good news but there is another side to this story.

The Box Latch™ Products’ goal is to magnify the reuse of packaging before recycling. The Atlantic Packaging video describing its sustainable packaging efficiency and circularity is truly worth watching. However, while Atlantic touts its reduce and recycle principles, the Box Latch Products’ focal point is reuse. Together, it is obvious that all three are essential if we expect to reduce climate change!

This Packaging World journal has published two articles illustrating how corrugated shippers can be reused multiple times. Check them out to see how easy it would be to implement those strategies in your own company. A simple web-based box reuse calculator illustrates in seconds the amazing financial savings derived from box reuse before recycling.

What always seems to get lost in the “feel good” recycling story are the time and money needed to 1) break down, 2) store and 3) transport paperboard to recycling centers. Additional costs are incurred to 4) clean, 5) liquefy and 6) manufacture recycled paperboard. And the story is not over yet because the recycled paperboard still must be 7) shipped to distributors and end users and 8) reconstructed into the same box or carton that left the site a few weeks or months previously. Lastly, none of these financial costs consider the energy required and pollution produced by the trucks burning up our highways.

To obtain a copy of our in-depth, proprietary Box Latch™ Savings and ROI Calculator and estimate your potential savings via ten possible ways, contact james@boxlatch.com.  +1 570.359.2580 or text +1 215-313-8972.