Banning plastic packaging: why can’t we just do it?

Plastic packaging can’t be banned without suitable alternatives for manufacturers to switch to. The problem is, while there are plenty of alternatives – paper, glass, aluminium – none of them can provide a straightforward swap for many of the things we use plastic for. 

The benefits of plastic

In particular, plastic is great at protecting things, keeping them airtight, watertight and hygienic. That’s essential for meeting health and safety standards for some products, such as medicines or bleach, but it’s also important for keeping certain types of food fresh (such as raw fish and meat, or cucumbers, which last an amazing 15 days longer when shrink-wrapped). Keeping food fresh reduces food waste, which is another major contributor to climate change. 

And the benefits of plastic don’t end there. Plastic is lighter than other packaging options, so it’s easier to transport – which also reduces carbon emissions. It can be made into any shape, it’s not fragile like glass or paper, and it’s easy to print usage and warning labels on. The unfortunate reality, therefore, is that plastic can do things that other materials can’t – for the moment, at least.  

There’s another problem with banning all plastic packaging: replacing it with other materials isn’t necessarily more environmentally friendly. There are other factors at play, and the pros and cons of each need to be weighed up when working out a balance between the most functional and the most sustainable option. 

 Plastic alternatives can cause environmental problems too. Glass and metal don’t break down, for example, and can cause land and sea litter just like plastic can. Working out the impact of a particular material on the planet is complex, with numerous factors having a part to play: how much it weighs, how far it’s travelled, how much of it is recyclable, how it’s disposed of, the amount of land and water taken to produce it and the processes used in its creation. The list goes on! 

Whatever the material, it’s always best to keep it in use for as long as possible so that it’s still giving value. Reducing our plastic use, reusing it where we can and recycling where we can’t is the best way to beat plastic pollution. In the UK, most of us can take advantage of kerbside recycling collections to recycle things like plastic bottles, pots, tubs and trays. Plastic bags and wrapping will be introduced to kerbside collections in the next five years, but in the meantime you can recycle them at many supermarkets. 

Recycled materials have a significantly lower environmental impact, and in an ideal world, they would make up all packaging and be recyclable as well – so they can keep bringing value to the world rather than thrown away. We’re already taking big steps towards this, but if we’re to ban anything it should be non-recyclable plastic. 

Part of the reason why plastic is so damaging to the environment is that some of it is single-use. The good news is that action has already been taken to replace some single-use plastics, such as disposable cutlery and straws, with less problematic alternatives. That’s thanks to the efforts of the UK Plastics Pact, the goal of which is to ensure 100% of plastic packaging is reusable, recyclable or compostable by 2025. Only two years to go! 

 Through the Plastics Pact, WRAP (the climate action NGO that brings you Recycle Now) is making great progress with helping to ban single-use plastics, increase the use of recycled plastic and encourage supermarkets and retailers to remove plastic packaging where it’s not necessary, as is the case for most loose fruit and veg. Read more about why plastic recycling is worth it.