BLOG IN A BOTTLE

Glass is already one of the most environmentally friendly packaging products available. It is made from natural raw materials and can be recycled over and over again. But glass manufacturers are actively seeking ways to reduce the environmental impact of glass even further. A key target is to reduce the weight of the empty glass container in order to reduce emissions during transport.

Beatson Clark, a UK-based glass packaging maker, has created a new lightweight 500 ml beer bottle which is almost 30% lighter than the company’s original bottle. As well as reducing the consumption of raw materials and energy during production, the new bottle also reduces production costs. Beatson Clark has designed the bottle with similar dimensions to the previous style, so breweries do not need to make costly changes to their bottling equipment. Designs can be customised to include an embossed company name, logo or other design.

The same lightweight glass can be applied to many other types of glass container including packaging for pharmaceuticals, food, and other beverages such as soft drinks. Many other glass container makers are developing similar products. Reaction from consumers to innovations in glass packaging has already proved to be positive.

Although the weight of glass packaging is an issue, the reality is that most glass is only transported short distances from the factory to the packaging plant. The same is true of recycled glass which is usually collected and processed locally. In some countries, particularly in Europe, recycling rates are extremely high.

The amount of recycled glass available has led Heinz-Glas of Germany to develop glass containers which are made of 100% recycled content. By using renewable energy sources, Heinz-Glass claims to have produced the first zero-emissions glass containers on a commercial scale.

Called New Age Glass, the recycled glass is melted in electric furnaces using energy provided by solar, wind and hydroelectric sources. These energy sources produce no carbon dioxide emissions, although some emissions come from the finishing processes required. By comparison, melting 100 tonnes of raw glass in a gas furnace produces around 81 tonnes of CO2, while melting the same amount of recycled glass in an electric furnace produces just 5 tonnes of CO2.

The physical and chemical properties of New Age Glass are similar to those of new glass in terms of safety, thermal properties, chemical and mechanical resistance, and recyclability. It is guaranteed for use as a packaging material for cosmetics, food and beverages.

The only way to tell the New Age Glass from other glass is the slight colour tint in the glass. There are also some micro-bubbles which are caused by the high viscosity of molten glass. Both colour and bubbles could be reduced, however, these would require the addition of chemicals. Heinz-Glas have therefore decided to keep the glass 100% recycled and pure.

These new products are just some examples of the lightweight glass and more environmentally friendly processes which are being developed by the glass container industry. It underscores the industry’s commitment to make an environmentally friendly product even better!

Oasis, a company well known for their fruity soft drinks, has launched a new range of drinks packaged in glass along with a new signature for the brand: “Be Fruit”! The new 330 ml glass bottle – nicely embossed with pieces of fruit which form a decorative band around the bottom of the bottle – will be available in bars, cafes and restaurants this summer.

Made by Orangina Schweppes, the Oasis brand is the second most popular in France. And with its more than two million fans on Facebook, we are happy to count them among our true friend of glass circle!

The new glass bottle is sure to attract even more fans as they sample the taste and freshness that glass provides. And of course, the glass bottles can be recycled time and time again, making the fruity drink a healthy drink for the planet as well!

Trying to balance a healthy diet around local and seasonal produce can often be quite tricky.

If we have to rule out every food source that comes wrapped in environmentally-harmful packaging, whilst adhering to the World Health Organisation’s 5-a-Day Program encouraging us to eat a minimum of five fruit and vegetables per day, many of us are left juggling a cabbage, potato and apple throughout winter.

Playing on our idea of fast-food, SLOW FAST FOOD offers slow-to-perish, fast-to-eat food - in this case, fruit and vegetables.

As the brand name suggests, there’s more than meets the eye. Not only does the brand gently nudge us to re-evaluate our associations with fast-food by replacing a burger with a vegetable, the simple, all-glass design is an accolade to the natural, purity of each ingredient it contains.

This what they promise:
Combining fresh produce in a design traditionally used to conserve food, SLOW FAST FOOD offers seasonally cultivated fruit and vegetables, contained in hand-filled glass pots ready to be enjoyed now or later.

Enjoy fresh, seasonal produce all year-around.

Did you know that on average, every Italian consumes around 37 bottles of wine in a year? And almost all (9 out of 10) prefer to buy wine in glass bottles. To meet that demand, almost 2.2 billion glass bottles are needed every single year!

In November last year, Assovetro – the Italian Association of glass producers – organised a tour of the area around Florence to enable journalists to discover the importance of the relationship between wine and glass. The tour began with talks from two experts in the field: Marco Esti, Associate Professor of Enology (the study of wine to you and I) at the University of Tuscia; and the renowned Italian food and wine sommelier, Adua Villa. Both presented scientific evidence that showed the taste and sensory characteristics of food and wine are best preserved by the neutral properties of glass.

In Empoli, the journalists had the opportunity to visit the Zignago Vetro glass plant. Starting with glass scrap (cullet) which is collected locally, the plant produces bottles and other glass containers for the local wine industry. Using scrap significantly reduces emissions from the plant. Its location, close to one of Italy’s major wine-producing regions, also ensures that emissions from transportation are minimised.

The tour continued at the Lamole di Lamole winery in Greve (Chianti), just 40 km from the Empoli plant. Here the journalists got to see the glass bottles produced at Zignago Vetro being filled with some of the very fine Chianti the winery is famous for. Naturally there was a tasting – this is Italy after all – the country where the relationship between glass, wine, and life itself is best enjoyed!

Glass is the greenest packaging material according to a report by Chloé Hecketsweiler which was published in the French magazine L’Expansion late in 2011. Using five criteria (raw material cost, carbon footprint, recycling rates, impact on health and cost to consumers) Hecketsweiler sought to quantify which packaging material was the greenest using data relating the French market. Over all five criteria, glass packaging scores 17/25, well ahead of plastics at 13/25.

Glass Ahead in Recycling

On average, every French person adds 86 kilograms of household packaging to the waste stream each year. When comparing plastic and glass, Hecketsweiler notes that 75% of glass packaging containers are recycled in France, but that just 20% of plastic containers find their way to recycling centres. Hecketsweiler believes consumers find it easy to recycle glass as it simply needs to be sorted into clear and coloured glass. By comparison, there are many different types of plastic and it is impossible to treat each type in the same way.

Glass Reduces Emissions

Hecketsweiler notes that less energy is used and less CO₂ is emitted if recycled glass is used to create new glass. However, she bases her emissions calculation on the use of 100% virgin materials and does not take into account the major progress manufacturers have already made to reduce the weight of bottles.

A European Life Cycle Assessment for glass bottle production shows that, on average, every tonne of recycled glass saves 670 kg of CO₂. Increasing the amount of recycled glass in the furnace by 10% decreases energy use by 3%. When glass is recycled, there is no need to produce, process and transport the virgin raw materials or to transport them, so less fuel is used. Glass bottles can now be produced with up to 100% recycled content – infinitely. This is certainly not the case for plastics.

Glass is Healthy

An area where glass shines is in terms of its health properties. Bisphenol-A (BPA), a component of many plastics, has been found to disrupt the hormone system of human beings. Plastics can also contain phthalates or antimony. Baby bottles containing BPA have already been banned in the EU, and toxicologists have also raised concerns over the effects of phthalates and antimony. By contrast, glass is 100% inert – a major advantage for consumers.

Glass Protects Vital Resources

In terms of the expense of raw materials, Hecketsweiler points out that glass is made of natural ingredients which are found in abundance in nature. Glass container production efficiently uses resources and does not depend on oil. If renewable energy is available and secure, glass can be produced without the need for any fossil fuels.

By contrast, plastic is derived from oil. Around two kilograms of oil is required to produce one kilogram of PET plastic. Overall, the manufacture of plastics absorbs 4% of the world’s limited supplies of oil.

Glass Represents Real Value

While glass comes out ahead of plastics in most areas, the one area in which Hecketsweiler believes plastic can compete is price. However, her survey only covered two products in one French supermarket. As European consumers already know, most products are priced the same despite the packaging material used.

It is true that high quality products are often packaged in glass because it is the most reliable material in terms of taste preservation. Glass also guarantees a much longer shelf-life for the product, helping to reduce food waste in the supermarket and at home. That has to be good for both your purse and the planet!

Simplicity is the watchword at Sprout – a New York-based company which manufactures sustainable skincare products. So it’s only natural that when it came to design the packaging, Sprout chose clear glass bottles to show-off their wonderful range of products.

Every Sprout skincare creation is made in small batches, using locally sourced organic ingredients. To reinforce the personal commitment, each bottle is signed and dated by the person who created the batch. A simple label on the front identifies the brand and the list of ingredients – no E-numbers in small print here!

Sprout chose glass packaging for its skincare range, principally because of its inert nature – the glass does not react to the contents inside, ensuring that they remain harmless to the user. And they allow the natural colours of the ingredients to shine through – simply beautiful!

If you like to enjoy a hot drink on your journey to work in the morning, take a look at these stunning double-walled glass bottles. Aquaovo specifically thought of tea drinkers when developing their flask. Simply place your tea in the space under the lid, and add boiling water to the container. When you are ready for a fresh brew, just invert the bottle to mix the water with the tea leaves. Stylish, practical and brewed perfectly to your taste!

The double-wall of glass helps to insulate the liquids inside, keeping them warmer (or colder) for longer than containers made from other materials. The outer layer of glass stays at room temperature, ensuring the bottle is easy to hold and preventing condensation from forming. And as they are made of glass, the contents are not tainted by the packaging.

The bottles produced by Silodesign are designed more for the table. Cold drinks, hot sauces, or even soup can be stylishly served from these beautiful containers. And the contents will taste just as the chef intended!

Packaging which showcases a product’s sustainability credentials is more likely to attract the attention of consumers according to research from The Big Picture, a UK-based design research agency. The Big Picture found that shopper’s reject products with more rational designs, even if they do have the best environmental credentials.

Based on a series of in-depth interviews with consumers, the agency found that consumers judged products negatively if they perceived them as having unnecessary packaging or using materials which are not friendly to the environment. In these cases, consumers were not influenced by recycle-friendly logos or other claims on the packaging.

The research got us wondering what factors influence you when you are making a purchase decision? Is price or the packaging material more important? Do you read all of the environmental information on a label, or do you simply select products based on your perception of the packaging material? Let us know what you think by voting on the Friends of Glass Facebook page!

To celebrate the company’s 140^th anniversary, Dutch brewer Heineken has launched a global competition to find a new design for their iconic bottle. The winning design will symbolise how people around the world will connect in the next 140 years.

The competition requires you to design one half of a bottle. You then select a complimentary design from Heineken’s Facebook gallery to complete the other half. The best combination will be judged the winner and will feature in a limited edition gift pack which will be available from December in the 175 countries where Heineken is sold.

But you need to hurry as entries close on 31 January! Take a look at the video for more information and don’t forget to share your designs on the Friends of Glass Facebook page.

Most energy drinks come in garish colours that are more at home on the sports field than the table. Simply because they’re generally not considered “tableready” for exclusive venues such as hotels, restaurants and clubs. Well, not any more! New York beverage maker OSO has given us a sneak preview of the new glass bottles which will see its premium energy drink adding class to high-end bars and tables around the world.

OSO comes in two flavours: Gold and White Gold. Both use all-natural ingredients and lightly carbonated spring water from a source in the Austrian Alps. The herb Stevia provides natural sweetness for the lighter White Gold formula, without the calories of sugar.

The simple but elegant design of the glass bottle reflects the pristine clarity of the drink, its natural content and premium stature.

Fouad Kallamni, president of Premier Beverage Group, believes in the future of OSO:
“Our new packaging sets us apart from the cluttered mainstream energy drink category by providing a premium, glass-bottle design that discerning customers will be glad to enjoy.”

So tell us,  what do you think of this new packaging design? Share your opinion on our Facebook page!