Label Release Liner Report: Developments, Innovations and Challenges

The label in the ‘green economy’
It was the task of Danielle Jerschefske, North America editor of Labels & Labeling, to address the topic of a label’s life-cycle value in a ‘green economy’ value chain. She discussed this prime agenda in detail, in the context of the label industry’s complete value chain. The industry is currently growing, she said, "at between two billion and 2.5 billion square meters each year"—a real challenge in the sustainability/recycling arena. The results of the 2011 North American label converter survey were presented—and they showed that environmental management’s main driver in the sector is to maker cost savings, though lean manufacturing and waste reduction were in second place. Asked what their main concerns are around sustainability, survey respondents cited confusion surrounding the definition of the word; the cost of alternative recycled or plant-based materials, and their quality as the prime concerns. Jerschefske discussed the main calls to action for labels in a ‘green economy’—communication and education, best practice, and facilitation—providing a rounded picture of the challenges facing the label industry today.