sustainability

 
WHAT THIS NEW PACKAGING TREND IS ABOUT
 
 

TANGO’S VIEW OF SUSTAINABLE PACKAGING

 

Here at Tango, we recognize the responsibility we have for pursuing sustainable actions in packaging in order to ensure cleaner coastlines, landfills, and a better overall environment. However, we also recognize that there is no perfect solution. We are seeking to find BETTER sustainable packaging rather than PERFECT sustainable packaging since every sustainable option comes with its own set of cons. We are looking for the best sustainability option for our clients and their consumers.

THE PLASTIC MISCONCEPTION

 

People everywhere have confused plastic as the enemy of the environment. There seems to be a misconception that plastic is the worst thing for our planet, and the only way to make a more sustainable future: eradicate plastic all together. This is simply a drastic misunderstanding. Plastic, in and off itself, is not evil… it's also not good. What we do with the plastic is what determines if it's good or bad. It's the responsibility of Tango to educate our clients so that they can educate their consumers, that plastic is not evil, what we do with plastic can determine if it's good or bad. If we start using plastic in sustainable ways, the environment will be rewarded.

HOW TO USE PLASTIC SUSTAINABLY

There are several different ways that plastic can actually be utilized to help the environment.

 

  1. Switching to shrink sleeves which are applied through heat application and thus don’t leave behind any adhesive residue which makes the product then nearly impossible to recycle. Adhesive leftovers contaminate both the plastic and the container and are often extremely difficult to remove. If the adhesive can’t be removed, the product is often unable to be recycled.

  2. Switching to a more sustainable material option for your label. There are several different materials that can be used for your shrink sleeve label, some of these options are even biodegradable. A sustainable material option is often well received by consumers and even prompts them to support your product rather than a competitor who isn't sustainably aware. ⅔ of northern American consumers stated that eco-friendly products are important to them and that they would support that product.

  3. Committing to some kind of GO-GREEN mission like companies such as PepsiCO, SwissMiss, and ZenWtr. Each of these companies have publicly committed to some type of effort to actively pursue a more eco-friendly future. Whether its PepsiCo’s promise to be 100% eco-friendly material by 2025, or SwissMiss new recyclable packaging material, or ZenWTR’s donating 1% of all sales to cleaning up coastlines, it's important to be saying and doing something. Silence is very loud to consumers in 2021.

Tango’s Personal Sustainability Efforts

Here at Tango, we have personally accepted the responsibility of facilitating more sustainable packaging. We recognize that there is no perfect solution, there are simply better options than others. 

We start by encouraging our clients to take and preach the approach of what we said earlier: plastic in and of itself is not the enemy, we have to change what we do with the plastic. If we can commit to expanding the plastics lifecycle, we can guarantee less waste along coastlines and landfills, and a better future environment.

Our shrink sleeves are an excellent sustainable material because of their abilities to be applied without the use of adhesives. This means they can also be removed easily and they won't contaminate the bottle. This makes both the plastic and the bottle recyclable again.

 

Likewise, we also offer our clients several different plastic options, several of which are biodegradable and recyclable. 

  1. Polyethylene Terephthalate (PET) is a type of plastic Tango offers that can be easily recycled, making it an excellent choice for sustainability purposes

  2. Polylactic Acid (PLA), another plastic offered by Tango is processed from the starch of corn, sugar beets, or sugar cane, making it a renewable thermoplastic and a biodegradable substance

  3. Oriented Polystyrene (OPS) is another material Tango offers that has gained popularity recently also due to its environmentally-friendly nature.