Page 18 - BusinessWest August 19, 2024

Surprising Study
Is a Glass Bottle Better for the Planet Than a Plastic Container?
“We try to understand, at the end of the day, what matters to people. The whole idea behind the study was to get an understanding of what people think and what drives their choices.”
NOMZAMO DLAMINI
Which packaging type for a 12-ounce, single- serve container of orange juice would you choose as the most sustainable option:
• An aluminum can made with recycled material;
• A carton described as biodegradable or compostable;
• Glass described as 100% recyclable; or
• Plastic described as biodegradable or compostable?
If you were like the U.S. consumers surveyed by food scientists in a UMass Amherst study, you’d prefer glass and believe it was the most sustainable choice. And you would be mistaken.
“Glass was the most sought-after and most highly esteemed packaging type. But it turns out, glass is actually among the least sustainable if you look at the whole packaging lifecycle,” said Nomzamo Dlamini, lead author of the paper recently published in the jour- nal Sustainability.
Dlamini, a food science doctoral candidate, was a recent visiting Fulbright scholar from the University of Pretoria in South Africa studying in the UMass Amherst lab of senior author Alissa Nolden, assistant professor of Food Science.
When asked to rank the packaging choices from their perception of the most to least sustainable, over- all the consumers responded: glass, carton, aluminum, and plastic.
Though food-packaging sustainability varies depend- ing on the type of product and packaging, the size and weight of the container, and other variables, in the case of the single-serve orange juice, a carton would be the most sustainable, followed by plastic, then canned, and, finally, glass.
This came as a surprise even to Dlamini. “I was shocked to read the lifecycle assessment from the experts that it takes so much energy to produce glass and recycle it — much more than what it takes to make or recycle plastic,” she said.
The study states that “the production and end-of-life impacts of plastic are less than that of glass; plastic
is lighter and thus requires less energy to transport. Furthermore, the aseptic sealing process of plastic con- tainers using steam is less energy-demanding than the retort system used for glass.”
The study aimed to understand the motivation
ALISSA NOLDEN
behind consumers’ packaging choices, while also weigh-
ing price, lifestyle, and other attitudes. In turn, the data
can help industry experts understand what consumers think, believe, and prefer, and educate them on how to make more sustainable choices.
“We designed a question- naire using a method called conjoint analysis, which mim-
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Title IX
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a policy prohibiting retaliation, including at the peer level, and that the policy calls for handling complaints of retaliation the same way it manages complaints of other forms of sex discrimination. The U.S. Department of Education has released helpful guidance on drafting such policies, which may be helpful to institutions as such policies are implemented and/or revised.
4. Is there a schedule or plan in place for annual employee training? Schools must annually train all employees on Title IX, their obligation as employees to address sex discrimination, and their reporting requirements. Different training is required for each of four employee statuses, pursuant to the following categories:
• All employees;
• Investigators, decision makers, and individuals with authority to modify or terminate supportive measures;
• Facilitators of informal resolution processes; and • Title IX coordinator and designees.
Practically speaking, institutions will have to evaluate the best method for ensuring that the training reaches all employees. Schools may consider implementing mass Title IX trainings for employees or incorporating such training into other meetings or trainings that are already in place. For example, institutions may consider incorporating such training into pre-existing staff meetings to effectively reach all employees rather than imposing additional, separate training times wherein some staff may not be available or are reluctant to attend.
5. Did the school decide to implement an informal grievance process? The new regulations permit schools to adopt an informal resolution process for complaints of sex discrimination based on
sex stereotypes; sex characteristics; pregnancy or related conditions; sexual orientation; gender identity; parental, family, or marital status; as well as for complaints
ics a real-life situation where you’re presented with vari- ous options and you have to make a tradeoff,” Dlamini said. “And we try to understand, at the end of the day, what matters to people. The whole idea behind the study was to get an understanding of what people think and what drives their choices.”
Nolden pointed out that, while many consumers expressed an intention to purchase sustainable packag- ing, in the end, the top motivating factor was price — particularly the lowest price — followed by packaging type, product claim, and packaging claim.
The ideal orange juice option — culled from the 847 adult consumers who answered the online sur- vey — was priced at $1.10 per 12 fluid ounces, pack- aged in glass, locally produced, and labeled as 100% recyclable.
The message to the food industry is that consumers are motivated to choose sustainable packaging, as long as the price is right, the paper states. “These sustain- able packaging options should be clearly labeled as such, effective (e.g. not defective or just as durable as conventional packaging) and affordable to increase con- sumers’ motivation and adoption of sustainable packag- ing for food and beverages.”
Ultimately, there is something even more impor- tant than choosing the best packaging when it comes to consuming food with a focus on sustainability, the paper concludes.
“Overall, while packaging choices contribute to envi- ronmental outcomes, the most impactful and practical way consumers can contribute to sustainability efforts is to reduce or avoid food waste.” BW
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