DS Smith survey shows consumers support recycling, want more options

DS Smith, a global packaging producer with a North American headquarters in Atlanta, has released a consumer survey that it says underscores the pressure on consumers, local governments responsible for trash collection and product suppliers to follow practices that encourage recycling, help reduce waste and keep materials in use for as long as possible.

The company says the survey was conducted from Oct. 14-18 with 1,000 respondents, a total that generally has a margin of error of plus or minus 3 percentage points. It was conducted using an online data collection methodology with the Toronto-based research firm Torfac.

RELATED: Report shows consumers have increased recycling, frustrated by excessive packaging

In the report, respondents say they are committed to recycling packages but admit resorting to bad habits sometimes when their at-home recycling bins are full. Per DS Smith’s reporting, nearly 70 percent of respondents say their recycling bins are mostly full, full or overflowing by the time collection day comes around. When their cans are fully loaded before being picked up, 20 percent say they throw extra recyclable material into the regular trash, meaning it could end up in a landfill. DS Smith adds that a few—four out of every 10—even stash it in a neighbor’s bin.

The company says the amount of material that needs to be recycled from homes has grown in part due to the rise in e-commerce that accelerated during the pandemic. Two-thirds of those surveyed reported an increase in the number of packages they are receiving now, compared to before the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic.

That trend is expected to grow, as about half of respondents say they anticipate shopping online more in the future.

More than 40 percent of those surveyed say they are recycling more today than two years ago, and 80 percent say the sustainability of packaging matters to them. Waste is viewed as a problem, with two out of three respondents saying they are concerned with the amount of waste they produce.

With the increased appetite for recycling, almost 60 percent of those polled say their recycling bins need to be bigger to fit their needs, while about 40 percent say they are running out of room in their recycling bin at least every two weeks.

“It’s clear there is real appetite among consumers to recycle, but any recycling system needs to be fit for purpose,” Managing Director of Paper, Forestry and Recycling North America Keith Tornes says. “E-commerce has grown, and now we need to see investment in domestic recycling systems grow to match it.”

RELATED: DS Smith starts out fiscal year profitably

DS Smith says that while paper-based packaging solutions are easy to recycle by nature, it is using its Circular Design Metrics to help identify areas in packaging with potential for improvement. The company adds that this focus on innovation means designing out packaging waste, replacing plastics and ultimately reducing the amount of material that needs to be processed in a recycling plant.