Introduction

Plastic packaging is used in many applications, from transporting goods and packaging products to protecting and preserving food. The topic of waste and the potential environmental impacts from the use of plastic in packaging continues to be a discussion topic globally and is a focus of key EU legislation on packaging and packaging waste. Noting that polyethylene (PE) is the main polymer type in the packaging sector, a comprehensive study of PE packaging, and its comparison with alternatives (paper, glass, metal), for more than 35 applications was performed for the European region to better understand the potential environmental impacts. Of these, 17 applications were primary food packaging.

Methods

A life cycle assessment study was conducted according to ISO 14040 and 14044 with a European regional scope. The potential environmental impacts assessed were global warming potential (GWP), fossil energy use and water scarcity. Use phase impacts, e.g., breakage and shelf life, were excluded in this study.

Results

This study found that PE packaging showed the lowest GWP among assessed alternatives in 11 of the 17 primary food packaging applications. This study also showed that PE-based packaging had a lower potential impact than market alternatives in 5 of 17 applications for water scarcity and 6 of 17 applications for fossil resource use.

Conclusion

This study showed that banning or restricting the use of plastics such as polyethylene for food packaging could potentially lead to higher GWP (i.e., greenhouse gas emissions) for many packaging applications. The selection of packaging formats to enable the lowest overall environmental impact is a complex process that requires comprehensive analysis.