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Just because packaging is recyclable in theory doesn't mean it will be recycled in reality.Whether packaging actually ge...
22/10/2026

Just because packaging is recyclable in theory doesn't mean it will be recycled in reality.

Whether packaging actually gets recycled depends on more than the material itself. It needs to be collected, sorted, processed and turned into something new, and all that requires the right infrastructure at every step.

For brands choosing packaging, it's worth looking beyond the recycling symbol and asking what happens after the customer puts it in the bin.

Because good packaging design considers not just how a product is made, but what happens when it's finished with.

Understand your packaging's real-world recyclability. Book a free call and we’ll talk through better options for your product. Link in bio ☎️

A compostable pack in the recycling bin is a contaminant.It looks like the responsible choice, and in the right system i...
19/10/2026

A compostable pack in the recycling bin is a contaminant.

It looks like the responsible choice, and in the right system it is. Drop it in kerbside recycling, and it becomes a problem for everything around it. Sorting equipment can’t reliably separate it from conventional plastic, so it ends up baled with recycled material. If enough contamination is found in a load of recycled materials, it risks the buyer rejecting the whole batch and it getting sent to landfill, good material included.

There, the compostable packaging breaks down slowly over decades without oxygen and releases methane, which traps around 28 times more heat than CO2 over 100 years.

Every market runs its own collection systems, so the right material depends on where your pack actually ends up. Many clients arrive at AWEN set on compostable. We map what their market can process, then design for that.

Understand your packaging's real-world recyclability. Book a free call, and we’ll talk through better options for your product. Link in bio ☎️

17/10/2026

Not all bioplastics are equal 👀 This chocolate wrapper can be composted OR recycled with paper. Here’s why 🍫

Once, on a business trip to South Australia, I walked into a Zambrero and ordered a Mexican bowl. Extra guacamole, obvio...
15/10/2026

Once, on a business trip to South Australia, I walked into a Zambrero and ordered a Mexican bowl. Extra guacamole, obviously.

I told them I was dining in, so I expected a proper plate.

Instead, it came in a disposable bowl with a lid. The guacamole got its own little container, with its own little lid.

I asked if I could have it on a reusable plate.

The attendant smiled: "Don't worry, it's compostable packaging."

So I asked the obvious question: "Where's the compost bin?"

She paused. "We only have the general waste bin."

So my "compostable" bowl, lid, guac cup and second lid were going exactly where every other piece of packaging goes. Landfill. And in landfill, without oxygen and the right conditions, compostable packaging doesn't compost. It just sits there.

This isn't just one shop. A lot of cafés and restaurants have swapped all packaging and reusable plates and cups for compostable versions, believing that makes them sustainable. But if there's no compost bin, no collection and no facility to process it, the only thing that has changed is the label.

"Compostable" has become the answer that ends the conversation. It sounds responsible, so nobody asks what actually happens next.

A sustainable product without a system around it is just a nicer-looking piece of waste. And for a customer sitting down to eat, the most sustainable option was the simplest one: a plate that gets washed and used again.

Have you seen something like this, a good idea that fell short in the last step?


Bioplastics have grown significantly over the past decade. But our waste systems haven't necessarily grown with them.Aro...
12/10/2026

Bioplastics have grown significantly over the past decade. But our waste systems haven't necessarily grown with them.

Around a decade ago, global bioplastics production capacity was measured at roughly 1.7 million tonnes. Today, reported global biobased plastics capacity is around 2.3 million tonnes — and is forecast to reach 4.7 million tonnes by 2030.

But there is an important misconception hiding behind the word ""bioplastic"":

Bioplastic does not mean compostable.

A bio-based plastic describes where its feedstock comes from. It can still behave just like conventional plastic.

For example, bio-PE and bio-PP are chemically equivalent to their fossil-based counterparts. They are not designed to biodegrade or compost. At end of life, they need to go through the appropriate plastics recycling system.

Other materials may be biodegradable or industrially compostable — but that creates a different challenge.

A compostable pack still needs to be correctly identified, separately collected and accepted by an appropriate organic-waste treatment facility. Being technically compostable does not mean it will compost wherever it ends up.

And this is where I think the market has a problem.

Material innovation has moved quickly. Collection systems, sorting infrastructure, composting capacity and consumer labelling haven't always kept pace.

We now have packaging that may be:

📌 bio-based but recyclable as conventional plastic;
📌 bio-based and industrially compostable;
📌 biodegradable but fossil-based; or
📌 partially bio-based and non-biodegradable.

Yet to a consumer, many of these packs can look almost identical.

The next phase of bioplastics cannot just be about developing new materials.

We need to design the system around them too — from clear disposal labels to collection, sorting, recycling and composting infrastructure.

Otherwise, we risk developing better materials without giving them a realistic end-of-life pathway.

11/10/2026

Let’s celebrate with me at the Sustainable Packaging Summit! Link in bio



Words like “eco-friendly”, “recyclable” and “sustainable” are claims — and claims need evidence.If you say your packagin...
08/10/2026

Words like “eco-friendly”, “recyclable” and “sustainable” are claims — and claims need evidence.

If you say your packaging is **recyclable**, can you demonstrate that the complete packaging format — including materials, coatings, labels, inks, adhesives, closures and other components — is compatible with the collection, sorting and recycling system in the market where you sell it?

If you claim “made with recycled content”, do you have supplier documentation confirming the percentage and source?

If you claim your packaging has a lower carbon footprint, what is the baseline, what lifecycle stages were assessed, and what data supports the reduction?

And if you call a material compostable, under what conditions, according to which standard, and within what timeframe?

Environmental claims should be specific, measurable and supported by evidence — not simply words that sound sustainable.

I recommend auditing every environmental claim on your packaging and asking one simple question:

Could we prove this claim if a regulator, retailer or customer challenged it?

If the answer is no, the claim needs to be revised or removed.

If you need support reviewing the technical evidence behind your packaging claims, get in touch with us at AWEN Packaging Consulting.

And if you want to start the review yourself, download our **Packaging Audit Checklist** - link in bio

Biodegradable. Carbon-neutral. Eco-friendly. Green.We see these words on packaging all the time.But what do they actuall...
04/10/2026

Biodegradable. Carbon-neutral. Eco-friendly. Green.

We see these words on packaging all the time.

But what do they actually tell us?

Take ""biodegradable” Under what conditions? How long does it take? What does it break down into? And what happens if the packaging ends up in landfill, recycling or the environment instead?

Or “eco-friendly” Friendly compared to what, and based on which environmental impact?

A sustainability claim is only as good as the evidence behind it.

Assessing that evidence means looking beyond the words on the pack — at the materials, coatings, inks, adhesives, manufacturing process and realistic end-of-life pathway.

Only a packaging engineer or material scientist can properly test these claims against the technical evidence, rather than simply taking the label at face value.

That’s what we do at AWEN: help brands make packaging claims they can actually substantiate.

If you want to ensure your claims are legit and honest, download our packaging audit checklist - link in bio

"Reuse is not a label. It’s a behaviour. But reuse alone doesn’t make something sustainable.Take a reusable coffee cup. ...
30/09/2026

"Reuse is not a label. It’s a behaviour. But reuse alone doesn’t make something sustainable.

Take a reusable coffee cup. It may have a higher footprint to produce than a single-use cup, so it needs to be actually reused enough times to justify that investment.

And then there’s end of life.

A reusable PU shopping bag, for example, may have a lower carbon footprint depending on how often it is used. But PU is still plastic: it can persist for a long time, contribute to microplastics as it degrades, and have limited recycling options.

A paper bag may not last as long, but its fibre can have an established recycling pathway and market value after use.

That’s why carbon footprint and reuse rates are not enough.

The goal should be to make things that last and retain value at the end of their life, whether through recycling, repurposing or another productive use.

End of life needs to be part of the material choice from the beginning.

Learn how to audit your packaging via the link in our bio!

"

29/09/2026

Reusable doesn’t automatically mean sustainable.

Many reusable bags are purchased, used a few times and forgotten.

The real question is: how many times is it actually reused?

New episode of Packaging Reality Check.

How many reusable bags do you have at home?


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