When shopping for skincare products, customers tend to thoroughly investigate the ingredients to determine which product promises the best results. Unfortunately, seldom do customers give the same amount of consideration to the product’s packaging material, its effect on the product itself, and the environmental implications that it carries. However, this is an essential factor to consider when buying any product, and customer awareness is increasing on this. More and more brands are switching towards sustainable and eco-friendly packaging materials to capture the moving customer trend and tag along the sustainability journey.
Cosmetics packaging comes in a variety of shapes, sizes, and colors. The materials used for such packaging include plastic, glass, ceramic, and metal tin containers. However, plastic and glass are by far the most commonly used packaging material in the cosmetics industry. But just because they are most widely used in the market, it does not necessarily mean that they are the best. And if we consider plastic, it is far from the best.
Plastic packaging has enormous dangers linked to it, both in terms of health concerns and environmental impact. Plastic is not a naturally occurring material; it is instead a human invention. It is made from various kinds of dangerous chemicals. Most of the time, a toxic chemical called BPA is used for increasing the overall strength and durability of the produced plastics. BPA has gained a lot of negative attention in the recent past because of its potential health-related concerns for human beings. Apart from that, plastic also uses tons of fossil fuels in its production phase, contributing a large chunk of carbon emissions into the atmosphere. There are BPA-free plastics as well, but it is generally not possible for customers to determine whether a given plastic packaging is BPA-free.
On the other hand, glass is also a prevalent material used for cosmetic packaging. It can be found in the form of spray bottles and jars that are used to store different kinds of cosmetic beauty products. Glass spray bottle is often designed stylishly and elegantly to capture costumers’ attention. Although glass is a naturally occurring material with excellent recycling capability, it is a highly dense material that makes for products with heavy net weights. This makes transporting goods packaged in glass a costly process that requires extreme care. Furthermore, its brittle nature requires extreme care when handling, another expense that the customers eventually bear.
A better alternative to plastic and glass packaging is aluminum packaging. Here are five reasons why you should pick cosmetics that use aluminum packaging material:
- BPA-Free: Aluminum is a naturally occurring metal that does not require any harmful chemicals in its production. It is also a non-porous material, which means it does not need to be coated with resins (resins are made of BPA). This makes aluminum a 100% BPA-free and safe material for consumable goods.
- Sustainable: Due to the large deposits of aluminum, it is the third most common metal found on earth. Aluminum is also one of the easiest and most efficient materials to recycle. It is 100% recyclable, and it can be recycled again and again without losing its quality. This ensures an unlimited supply of the material to industries, ensuring stability in the price and flow of the material – highly sought after features in any industry.
- Eco-friendly: Recycling aluminum is much more cost-effective than producing new aluminum from virgin ore. It is estimated that only 5% of primary production energy is required to recycle aluminum. A win-win situation for the packaging industry. That is why 75% of aluminum ever produced is still used today. Recycling aluminum significantly reduces the carbon footprint of the entire packaging industry. With aluminum packaging materials, companies can be sure to capture the eye of the ever-growing green consumers.
- Versatile and lightweight: Aluminum is lightweight but very strong. It is so durable that it is also used in the manufacturing of airplanes as well. It is highly versatile and can be molded in different shapes easily. This gives companies the freedom to design and manufacture custom tins and container as per their desire and needs. It is also easy to imprint on aluminum cans and bottles with the existing printing technologies. Companies can easily print their logos and slogans without altering the printing techniques currently installed in productions lines. This makes for easy customization of products which can always come in handy during marketing campaigns.
- Corrosion-resistant: Unlike other metals, aluminum is corrosion resistant. It can maintain its integrity for a long time without requiring any maintenance. Its opaque characteristics keep cosmetic products safe by stopping moisture, oxygen, or UV rays. This ensures a lengthy lifespan for products that are packed and shipped in aluminum packaging.
Glass and aluminum both are great alternatives to plastic packaging in the cosmetics industry. Both are BPA-free, sustainable, and eco-friendly materials. Furthermore, both these materials are easy to mold;therefore, a wide variety of glass jars, tin containers, and aluminum cans are available for customers to choose from. However, the ultimate option should always be aluminum, as it has a few added advantages over glass. It is easily recyclable, lighter in weight, and cheaper to produce than glass. Due to its design, safety, sustainability, and durability, aluminum packaging is becoming more popular in the packaging industry.
