Future of Packaging
Release Date: Each January
Professional Accreditation: IEMA (as part of MSc)
Lead Organisation: IBERS, Aberystwyth University
Learn the facts about plastic and develop a sustainable packaging strategy for your business
With around one third of our food wasted and in the context of the ongoing scandal of plastic pollution, the packaging used for our food and drinks is the source of critical problems and potential solutions for achieving a more sustainable society. The aim of this module is to assess the challenges and opportunities around packaging, and to provide businesses with the tools to develop their own packaging strategies.
Podcast
We've recorded a short Podcast, titled "Plastic Packaging: Problems, Progress and Prospects"
In this episode, Dr Mathew Jones talks about the pros and cons of plastics and their use in the packaging industry. He also shares details of the Future of Packaging distance learning module offered through BioInnovation Wales.
Listen to the podcast below!
Content
The course will consist of a series of lectures and guided learning focused on:
List of Units
| Product quality |
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|---|---|---|
| Product security and safety | Accidental and deliberate contamination and damage and how packaging reduces the risks |
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| Marketing | How packaging can affect customer choices and drive sales |
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| GHG emissions | The carbon cost of producing packaging |
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| Environmental impact | Investigated impacts, from micro-plastics in the sea to litter in parks |
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| Economic costs | The economics of packaging, from the cost of production to the storage space taken up by packaged products |
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| Governing packaging sustainability | Who is and who should be responsible for improving packaging sustainability? What drivers are there for improvement? |
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| Circular economy solutions | Packaging and the waste hierarchy; extending the packaging value chain |
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| Packaging in the future | As new technology transforms our food supply systems, what is the role of packaging in the future? |
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| Case studies | Exploring real world examples of packaging challenges and solutions |
Tutors
| Tutors Name |
|---|
| Dr Richard Kipling |
Testimonials
"I have completed the Future of Packaging module – the content is excellent! There is a big gap in everyone’s knowledge on this. Everyone wants to do the right thing and it’s unclear as to what this is! The module gave me really good insight to the plastic cycle, deepened my knowledge of the many packaging conundrums; and has pointed me towards what I need to know. I also gained an understanding of EPRs and some of the wider issues surrounding Waste Management."
The position that we have got ourselves into, of an unsustainable relationship with single use items, is retrievable with joined up thinking and some energy and drive. With the necessary direction of travel a circular economy is possible. With my better understanding of packaging and its relationship with the wider world, I am hopefully more able to give guidance, which could be used to provide more sustainable solutions.