| 1. |
- Molina-Besch, Katrin, et al.
(författare)
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A Supply Chain Perspective on Green Packaging Development -Theory Versus Practice
- 2016
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Ingår i: Packaging Technology & Science. - : Wiley. - 0894-3214. ; 29:1, s. 45-63
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The purpose of this paper is to provide insight into how companies work during packaging development to reduce negative environmental impact along supply chains, and to compare their practical approaches with the theoretical concepts presented in the literature. The research approach is explorative and based on nine cases in the food and manufacturing industries in Sweden. Data were collected from the managerial perspectives of the packaging manager, the logistics manager and the environmental manager. The findings indicate that companies commonly apply a variety of green packaging approaches with a focus on approaches with clear economic benefits. Moreover, companies seem to lack guidance on how to handle trade-offs and are unable to fully utilize the theoretical environmental benefits of green packaging approaches because of internal and external barriers. The paper presents five propositions regarding to what extent the theoretical green packaging concepts are applied in practice. To address the gap between theory and practice companies should: develop packaging solutions that contribute to a reduction of environmental impact from the consumer phase (for example through improved apportionment, user-friendly and informative packaging); use local packaging adaptation as a strategy to address geographically varying transport, handling and waste management conditions; replace brand recognition through packaging size and shape with graphic design, high-quality materials and printing. The results confirm that internal and external collaborations are important requirements for successful green packaging development. Copyright (c) 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
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| 2. |
- Molina-Besch, Katrin
(författare)
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Green packaging development in theory and practice
- 2016
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Licentiatavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- In the light of the environmental challenges society is facing it is important thatboth products and their packaging systems are optimised from an environmental perspective. Previous research highlights that environmental optimisation of packaging requires an integrated assessment of product and packaging together.Theory on green packaging development (GPD) is comprehensive and there areexamples of methods that promote a holistic perspective but it is unclear how well these theoretical concepts are incorporated into current industrial practice. The first purpose of this research is explore how, and to what extent, the organisation and content of current GPD practices support the integrated environmental optimisation of complete product and packaging systems. Since existing GPD theory does not provide clear recommendations for how companies should prioritise between different environmental requirements on packaging, the second purpose of this research is to develop prioritisation guidelines for food GPD.The underlying research consists of one interview study of GPD in the Swedishmanufacturing and food industry and a systematic review of food life cycleassessment studies. For the empirical study, twenty-seven semi-structuredinterviews were conducted at nine case companies. The empirical studydemonstrates on one hand that the case companies systematically considerenvironmental aspects of packaging and product systems and that they have started to organise GPD according to the principles of integration. On the other hand, the empirical study indicates that the case companies currently do not utilise the complete range and potential of theoretical environmental improvement opportunities in GPD. The thesis concludes that the case companies possess some but not all of the capabilities that support the integrated environmental optimisation of product and packaging systems. Internal integrative capabilities such as cross-functionality in the packaging development process and technological capabilities in the form of an awareness of the influence of packaging on the environmental impact of the entire supply chain are well established in most case companies. External integrative capabilities (such as collaboration with customers) and value-utilising capabilities (such as the ability to seize on marketing opportunities of green packaging) are less advanced in most case companies. The systematic review of forty-eight food LCAs has shown that various environmental requirements on packaging are of differing environmental importance in a life cycle perspective depending on the type of food product. Based on the systematic review of food LCAs, the thesis suggests guidelines for food GPD.The research contributes with empirical data about GPD by providing information about the level of internal and external integration in packaging development processes and an overview about the spectrum of GPD approaches applied in the case companies. Paper 3 adds to GPD theory with an overview of the environmental impact of packaging in food SCs and a suggestion for how different environmental packaging requirements can be prioritised for different types of food products. Practitioners can use the results and propositions to benchmark their own GPD processes, and to take up one or more of the suggestions on how to enhance their capabilities to support the integrated environmental optimisation of product and packaging systems in their organisations.
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| 3. |
- Molina-Besch, Katrin
(författare)
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Prioritization guidelines for green food packaging development
- 2016
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Ingår i: British Food Journal. - 0007-070X. ; 118:10, s. 2512-2533
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Purpose: Current literature emphasizes using a holistic perspective on green packaging development (GPD) as an important strategy for reducing the environmental impact of products’ supply chain (SC). In practice, however, it can be difficult for packaging developers to strike a balance between all the different environmental requirements on packaging, and trade-offs are common. Life cycle assessment (LCA) can provide this type of information, but many food companies lack the time and resources to conduct detailed assessments. The purpose of this paper is to provide prioritization guidelines for food GPD based on a systematic review of food LCAs.Design/methodology/approach: As basis for the suggested guidelines, 48 food LCAs covering eight types of food were reviewed following a standardized format. The review consisted of a quantitative analysis of the global warming potential results and a qualitative analysis of the LCAs’ conclusions.Findings: The prioritization guidelines propose three priority areas for food GPD that companies can select from based on product characteristics. They also provide suggestions for improving packaging in the three priority areas.Originality/value: The proposed guidelines can help food companies develop packaging solutions that contribute to minimizing the environmental impact along food SCs. The review focuses on the role of packaging in food SCs, which has not been previously analyzed in published LCA reviews.
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| 4. |
- Molina-Besch, Katrin, et al.
(författare)
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Students' learning experience in multidisciplinary project groups : Insights from a packaging development course
- 2016
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Ingår i: Proceedings of LTH's 9:e Pedagogiska inspirationskonferens (15/12 2016). ; , s. 26-28
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Konferensbidrag (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- In a world where technical knowledge gets outdated in an ever increasing speed, it is important that engineering education provides students not only with broad technical competences but also with so-called soft skills such as communications skills, leadership skills and team-working skills. When it comes to team-working skills, group projects have become an inevitable part of most LTH programs. LTH students are used to work in groups and by the end of their education, it can be expected that most of them are successful team players. A complication with regard to the development of team working skills is however, that the working conditions in homogenous teams are very different to the working conditions in heterogeneous groups. While project groups in LTH courses in most cases can be considered to be relatively homogenous, most real-life working groups such as research teams or product development teams are heterogeneous, simply because most real-life problems require a team of professionals with different competences and backgrounds. In an attempt to prepare students for the working environment in multidisciplinary teams, the LTH course Packaging technology and development requires students to form a project group with students from several LTH programs and with different nationalities. When it comes to the results of the group projects, all involved teachers agree that in most cases group diversity has a positive impact on creativity and problem-solving in the teams. At the same time, working in multidisciplinary and multinational teams can be a difficult and frustrating experience for some students. An interesting research question is accordingly how students experience the learning environment in multidisciplinary teams over time. To answer this question, we have during the autumn term 2015 collected written student reflections about their experiences with the multidisciplinary group environment based on a written survey (70 respondents). The students handed in one reflection at the beginning of the group project when they just had formed their groups and one reflection at the end of the course when they had presented their project results. The paper presents the results of the survey data that can be valuable input for other LTH courses that work with or plan to work with multidisciplinary project groups.
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| 5. |
- Molina-Besch, Katrin, et al.
(författare)
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The environmental impact of packaging in food supply chainsdoes life cycle assessment of food provide the full picture?
- 2019
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Ingår i: The International Journal of Life Cycle Assessment. - : Springer Berlin/Heidelberg. - 0948-3349 .- 1614-7502. ; 24:1, s. 37-50
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- PurposeDue to the urgency and the magnitude of the environmental problems caused by food supply chains, it is important that the recommendations for packaging improvements given in life cycle assessment (LCA) studies of food rest on a balanced consideration of all relevant environmental impacts of packaging. The purpose of this article is to analyse the extent to which food LCAs include the indirect environmental impact of packaging in parallel to its direct impact. While the direct environmental impact of food packaging is the impact caused by packaging materials' production and end-of-life, its indirect environmental impact is caused by its influence on the food product's life cycle, e.g. by its influence on food waste and on logistical efficiency.MethodsThe article presents a review of 32 food LCAs published in peer-reviewed scientific journals over the last decade. The steps of the food product's life cycle that contribute to the direct and indirect environmental impacts of packaging provide the overall structure of the analytical framework used for the review. Three aspects in the selected food LCAs were analysed: (1) the defined scope of the LCAs, (2) the sensitivity and/or scenario analyses and (3) the conclusions and recommendations.Results and discussionWhile in packaging LCA literature, there is a trend towards a more systematic consideration of the indirect environmental impact of packaging, it is unclear how food LCAs handle this aspect. The results of the review show that the choices regarding scope and sensitivities/scenarios made in food LCAs and their conclusions about packaging focus on the direct environmental impact of packaging. While it is clear that not all food LCAs need to analyse packaging in detail, this article identifies opportunities to increase the validity of packaging-related conclusions in food LCAs and provides specific recommendations for packaging-related food LCA methodology.ConclusionsOverall, we conclude that the indirect environmental impact of packaging is insufficiently considered in current food LCA practice. Based on these results, this article calls for a more systematic consideration of the indirect environmental impact of packaging in future food LCAs. In addition, it identifies a need for more packaging research that can provide the empirical data that many food LCA practitioners currently lack. In particular, LCA practitioners would benefit if there were more knowledge and data available about the influence of certain packaging characteristics (e.g. shape, weight and type of material) on consumer behaviour.
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| 6. |
- Molina-Besch, Katrin, et al.
(författare)
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Transport efficiency of packaging in food supply chains : - Does it matter in a life cycle perspective?
- 2017
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Ingår i: Conference Proceedings of the 29th Nofoma Conference : "Taking on Grand Challenges" - "Taking on Grand Challenges". - 9789177533375 ; , s. 504-519
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Konferensbidrag (refereegranskat)abstract
- Purpose: Packaging adds weight and volume to food products, thereby increasing the environmental impact of transport processes. This research examines the relative importance of transport efficient packaging in food supply chains that rely on road transport compared to other environmental requirements, such as packaging material minimization and food waste reduction.Design/methodology/approach: Screening life cycle assessment methodology was applied to analyse two different packaging systems in two food supply chains. Data were collected from a major Swedish food producer.Findings: The findings show that in the food supply chains analyzed, the transport efficiency of packaging has lower environmental importance than packaging material minimization and food waste reduction, but that the aspect is context specific. The study describes how transport distances and truck size influence the size of the potential environmental benefit of transport efficient packaging in the supply chains analysed.Research limitations/implications:The study identifies a need for future research to analyse the relevance of packaging transport efficiency in other kinds of food supply chains. The study was limited to two supply chains of one Swedish food producer.Practical implications: The findings can help practitioners to take more informed decisions about the transport optimization of packaging.Social implications: The findings contribute to the understanding of the environmental impact of packaging in food supply chains.Original/value: The results contribute to research about the trade-offs between different environmental requirements on food packaging.
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| 7. |
- Molina-Besch, Katrin
(författare)
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Unravelling the Green Packaging Dilemma : Packaging Development for Sustainable Food Supply Chains
- 2018
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Doktorsavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- Green packaging development (GPD) involves the process of developing packaging with minimized environmental impact. Over the last decade, the GPD perspective has evolved from a traditionally packaging material-focused one to a holistic one. A holistic perspective on GPD means that the different environmental requirements on packaging have to be combined so that the overall environmental impact of packaging and product combinations is minimized. To apply a holistic perspective to food GPD, the food industry must consider that food packaging’s environmental impact is not just limited to the production and waste management of the packaging materials per se, but also influences the environmental impact of the entire food supply chain. Packaging influences, for example, the amount of food waste and the amount of energy used for food storage and transportation. This thesis explores the environmental efforts in current packaging development (PD) practice and increases the understanding of how to balance different environmental requirements during food PD.The research applies a mixed method approach consisting of five studies. To explore the gap between GPD theory and practice, it includes an interview study with nine companies in the Swedish food and manufacturing industries. The research relies on quantitative research methods in the form of a review of 48 food life cycle assessment (LCA) studies and a screening LCA study to increase the understanding of how to combine different environmental requirements in food PD to minimize the overall environmental impact of food packaging and product combinations. A second review of 32 food LCAs scrutinizes the food LCA methodology as to how the environmental impact of packaging is analysed. The remainder of the research consists of a collaboration project with a food industry partner that resulted in the development of an environmental evaluation tool for food packaging.Despite the fact that the interview study found that a combination of different environmental requirements were considered during PD, it identified a general preference for certain environmental requirements across all case companies. It can thus be concluded that in the case companies there is a gap between the theoretical concept of a holistic perspective on GPD and PD practices. A lack of internal and external integration in PD as well as marketing requirements on packaging were identified as general barriers to a holistic perspective on GPD. The results of the first LCA review and the screening LCA study show that the relative importance of different environmental requirements on packaging depends on the type of food product, the type of packaging and the conditions in the SC.The findings of this research shed more light on GPD practice in terms of to the combination of the environmental requirements considered and in terms of how internal and external integration efforts in PD practice relate to the application of a holistic GPD perspective. Moreover, the research suggests a practitioner-oriented approach to the application of a holistic GPD perspective in the form of prioritization guidelines for food GPD and a simplified environmental evaluation tool for food packaging. Lastly, the thesis contributes to the development of food LCA methodology to increase the validity of packaging-related results in food LCAs.
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| 8. |
- Pålsson, Henrik, et al.
(författare)
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A quantitative study of energy consumption factors for three types of distribution channels
- 2017
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Konferensbidrag (refereegranskat)abstract
- PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to analyse the impact of six energy consumption factors (unsold products, product returns, packaging, freight transport, passenger transport and buildings) on the total energy consumption in three types of distribution channels for e-commerce and conventional trade.Design/methodology/approachThe study uses a quantitative calculation model where input data for the energy factors can be varied. The model is used to calculate the energy consumption for six IKEA products, four textile products (based on the supply chain of Nudie Jeans) and books, which were early e-commerce products. It calculates and compares the energy consumption in distribution via a store, a pick-up point and home delivery for six energy consumption factors. Data are collected from various sources, such as archival data, NTM, Swedish Transport Administration, Ecoinvent and SimaPro. In the calculations, a baseline scenario is first outlined for each product based on the current supply chain and product characteristics. Second, the baseline scenario is compared to a time optimisation scenario and an energy minimisation scenario. Third, the impact of the energy consumption factors on the total energy consumption in different distribution channels are analysed. FindingsThe findings shows the relative importance of six energy consumption factors (unsold products, product returns, packaging, freight transport, passenger transport and buildings) on the total energy consumption in distribution systems with home delivery, pick-up points and store sales for various types of products. It also discusses the importance of each energy consumption factor in the three types of distribution channels. Furthermore, by analysing the freight transport factor, we get insights into energy differences in global and domestic supply chains.Research limitations/implications The paper study retail and textile products as well as books in three supply chains.Practical implicationsThe findings can help supply chain managers in 1) selecting environmentally efficient distribution systems (home delivery, pick-up point or store) and 2) to prioritise work efforts between the six energy consumption factors within each distribution system to reduce total energy consumption.Original/valueThe paper provides new insights into both relative and absolute effects of unsold products, product returns, packaging, freight transport, passenger transport and buildings on the total energy consumption of three types of distribution channels for e-commerce and conventional trade.
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