The packaging industry is thriving with time. It introduces new and innovative packaging to develop ease for companies and customers. There are many different packaging materials, and they all have advantages in one way or another—for instance, plastic, polythene, polyester, steel, aluminum, etc.
Glass is one of the packaging materials used by the packaging industry. Many packaging items are manufactured from glass, such as bottles, jars, boxes, etc. Due to this, it has prime importance that cannot be neglected. Glass has multiple advantages that make it a useful packaging material. These benefits are discussed under,
Glass is Reusable
The reusability of glass is yet another quality that makes it a special packaging material. It is easy to reuse glass jars and bottles before recycling them and altering their shapes. This is because glass is a strong material that does not lose its quality and shelf life. Moreover, cleaning the used glass jars and bottles is simple without harming their quality. Reusing glass is further cost-effective because it cuts the cost of the whole recycling process and saves resources. On estimate, glass items can be reused fifty times without damaging their appearance and quality.
Glass is recyclable
Another advantage of glass that makes it a perfect packaging material is its recyclable nature. According to the evidence and experiments, it is seen that glass can be recycled 100%. Normally, the material is recycled several times, losing its strength and quality. But glass is above these problems. It can be recycled again and again an infinite number of times, and the cherry on top is that its quality does not deteriorate.
When glass is recycled, it does not produce waste materials because not even 1% of glass goes waste. The method of recycling is easy too. You need to melt and shape the glass again. Companies benefit greatly from this nature of glass because they do not need to buy raw materials again and again at a higher price but buy scrap materials at lower prices and reuse them. Almost 80% of the new glass materials come from old glass pieces.
Glass is a Natural Product
Making synthetic items is a great task. A lot of resources and energy are needed to do this job. One has to ensure that the combined benefits of all the resources as one item must be more than the individual resources to double the benefits and cater to the loss. But this is so difficult.
Unlike other packaging materials, glass occurs naturally. All its ingredients have natural origins, which is why all its resources are renewable. Glass is manufactured with limestone, soda ash, and sand. These components are available in large quantities, and the chances of them depleting are few. Therefore, finding and accumulating resources that benefit companies and cut costs is easy.
Glass Promotes Circular Economy
Glass is the major packaging material in the consumer goods market. Over 125000 people work in the glass value chain in Europe. It is the primary element in packaging items in the food, beverage, cosmetic, pharmaceutical, perfume, and interior design industries.
Circular economy refers to goods’ production, consumption, reuse, and recycling. Glass is the perfect example. The circular economy is also cost-efficient because all the processes are linked. For example, Packaging wasted by one industry can be useful for the other. Hence, its cost can be reduced.
Glass Does Not Damage Human Health
Apart from the advantages for the company, glass is also beneficial for the customers. It ensures the complete safety of the customers because it does not react with the skin or does not cause any disease. Moreover, it does not provide any way for harmful materials and toxins to pass through because glass is non-porous. Therefore, food items stored in glass jars and bottles remain safe, and you are less likely to get sick after eating those things.
Additionally, glass is an inert material. This means it has no chemical reactions with the food stored inside it. Hence, if you store food items in glass jars and bottles, there is no need to worry about the quality. It will remain in its original condition.
Glass and Good Environmental Health
Unlike plastic and other non-biodegradable materials, glass is super eco-friendly. It does not harm the environment, and neither does it pollute it. Moreover, it does not promote the depletion of resources. All of this is possible because glass can be recycled and reused again and again. In addition, it dissolves into the soil without leaving any toxins behind.
Another distinctive reason why companies use glass as the packaging material is to satisfy their customer’s concerns about the environment. The use of glass packaging adds to the eco-accommodating image of the company and leaves a positive impact on the customers.
