The Future of Drinks Packaging
The packaging that drinks brands come in presents a significant sustainability challenge and a massive creative opportunity. Glass, plastic, aluminium, and composite materials each have their own distinct pros and cons in regards to their environmental impacts and their supporters. The industry must move beyond debates over which is the "best" material, which are clogging up my LinkedIn feed, and race at Usain Bolt speed towards practical, systemic improvements in materials, design, and end of life solutions.
We simply have to do everything, everywhere, all at once.
The Nature Footprint of Alcohol: Biodiversity Loss and the Path to Resilient Drinks Businesses
When we talk about sustainability in drinks, discussions often focus on carbon emissions, and rightfully so as it’s the most important challenge we must tackle. But climate change isn’t the only crisis the planet faces. Biodiversity loss is accelerating at an alarming rate, with species extinction now occurring up to 1,000 times faster than the natural background rate due to human activity.
Nature is not just a backdrop or somewhere we go at the weekend, it is the foundation on which everything we value is built. From the air we breathe to the water we drink, from the food on our plates to the raw materials that fuel our economies, nature sustains us in ways we often take for granted.
Understanding EPR
With EPR, DRS, ECGTD, GCD, and probably more, there’s a flood of random collections of letters, also known as acronyms, for drinks producers to get their heads around over the next few years. In our last post we explored the UK’s upcoming Deposit Return Scheme (DRS) and this week we’re looking into Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR)
The Return of Deposit Return Schemes
After years of debate, the UK’s Deposit Return Scheme (commonly referred to as DRS) has passed through Parliament, with implementation scheduled for October 2027.
What will be included? How much will it cost? And, crucially, how can brands prepare for the changes while keeping costs under control? We thought it would be helpful to break down the details, highlight the challenges, and explore the opportunities the DRS presents for drinks brands.