China Considers Green Packaging

China Daily, one of that nation’s prominent English-language newspapers, has singled out “green packaging” as an endeavor worth pursuing for the nation with the world’s fastest-growing economy.

Referring to the World Packaging Conference, which took place in April in Beijing, the newspaper noted in an editorial that “green packaging [is] a new but highly significant concept for China.”

Stated the newspaper’s editorial: “By adhering to the principle of ‘reduce, re-use, recycle, refill and degrade,’ the new idea advocates a packaging method that encourages the use of less material and recyclable and degradable materials. While the developed world embraced the idea many years ago, China is trying to catch up.”

For recyclers, this can mean a significant payoff. According to China Daily, “The domestic packaging market was valued at $50 billion last year [and] it is growing at the fast pace of 20 percent annually.”