Almost three quarters (71.4%) of German consumers would spend more money on Christmas gifts wrapped in recyclable packaging, despite the ongoing cost of living crisis, according to a new survey.
The survey on Christmas shopping preferences, commissioned by Pro Carton, the European Association of the Carton and Folding Carton Industry, targeted over 5000 European consumers, including 1002 from Germany.
The survey was part of a broader investigation into consumer views on key issues impacting climate change today such as sustainable forestry, transport and packaging, as well as other global issues such as the war in Ukraine, Covid-19 and the economic crisis.
The survey further reveals that Germans are also thinking about the environment after the festive season: a remarkable 88% of respondents said they would recycle the waste from their Christmas presents. Well over half (60.3%) said they would separate and recycle all materials, 20.5% said they would do so if there was enough space to recycle, and a further 7.2% if there were clear instructions to this effect on the packaging.
The results also show that 64.8% of German consumers surveyed want to make a conscious effort to buy gifts that are packaged in sustainable materials, with 31.5% saying they would do so for all gifts and 33.3% for some of their gift choices.
When asked which packaging material German consumers would prefer to buy their Christmas gifts in, 61.8% chose packaging made of paper and cardboard (folding box or folding carton). This highly recycled, sustainable packaging medium was by far the most popular. Corrugated board (9.4 %) was the second most popular choice among German consumers, followed by glass (7.2 %), foil (4.4 %), plastic (2.5 %), metal (2 %) and polystyrene (1.9 %).
Winfried Mühling, Director of Marketing & Communications at Pro Carton, had the following to say about the Germans' efforts towards sustainability: "The most important finding of this survey is that German consumers are determined to do their bit for the environment despite the difficult economic situation.
It is now up to companies and retailers to ensure sustainable materials such as cardboard as packaging material for their products. Apart from the urgency of mitigating the effects of climate change, the survey results clearly show that environmentally friendly packaging is increasingly influencing purchasing decisions positively as consumers demand sustainable measures from companies. Sustainable packaging is therefore an effective tool for building long-term brand loyalty.
Cardboard should always be disposed of separately from other recycled materials. If cardboard ends up in the residual waste, its valuable fibres are lost forever. Returning each carton to the carton recycling stream is critical to recycling because the fibres contained in cartons can be recycled up to 25 times with little to no loss of material durability. Furthermore, harmonised collection and recycling procedures across Europe and separate collection by different recycling streams are key to achieving the industry's goal of ensuring a 90% recycling rate for fibre-containing packaging in Europe by 2030."
www.procarton.com.
