MeadWestvaco’s Natralock Answers Call for Sustainable Packaging Systems

RICHMOND, Va.—MeadWestvaco Corporation announced the findings of an independent comparative analysis between its tear-resistant, paperboard-based Natralock packaging solution and the traditional PVC clamshell package. The analysis, conducted by Environmental Packaging International (EPI), demonstrated Natralock’s superior performance against the metrics considered among the most important to packaging decision-makers: packaging fees, design for environment and the Wal-Mart packaging scorecard aimed at reducing packaging waste.

“We apply our expertise in material science, chemistry, engineering and design to provide our customers with innovative solutions that are sustainable and, in many ways, superior to their alternatives. Natralock is a prime example,” said Mike Skrovanek, global product manager for Natralock, MeadWestvaco. “We know we have a great ground-breaking packaging solution that offers significant return on investment. With this latest report, customers are armed with independent, measurable research and data enabling them to make well-informed purchasing decisions.”

International Packaging Fee Comparison
With the implementation of packaging fee programs—the requiring of consumer packaged goods companies to pay fees based on the packaging components used in their systems—becoming an increasingly common practice, the analysis compared fees associated with two versions of an ink cartridge carton in nine representative markets. While the systems have dissimilar packaging components, EPI calculated the component weights of the PVC system (158.6 grams) and Natralock (102.4 grams), and determined the average fee of Natralock to be 73 percent lower than the alternative. In general, the larger amount of plastic used in the PVC system resulted in higher fees, and Natralock’s high percentage of recycled content helped contribute to its better score.

“MeadWestvaco provides packaging solutions all over the world, and our customers are constantly looking for solutions that decrease packaging fees,” said Skrovanek. “This analysis shows the fees associated with our system to be less than those of its alternative—a proposition that’s beneficial to the bottom line no matter where you operate.”

Material Health Values
While cost reductions are important to any business, the heart of investing in sustainable packaging solutions is to reduce the environmental impact of packaging. Seeking to measure the impact made by each system, the firm used a methodology based on the MERGE Lifecycle Assessment Tool to calculate and analyze four material health values:
• The grams of raw materials used to produce the packaging materials
• Energy used to produce the packaging materials
• The carbon equivalents of greenhouse gases (GHGs) emitted during packaging material production and recycling or disposal
• A weighted average of chemical “bad actors” used for production – as defined by groups including the Environmental Protection Agency

According to the analysis, the Natralock packaging materials required fewer raw materials, less energy, and a lower average of chemical “bad actors” for production than the PVC alternative. The production and disposal of the Natralock materials also resulted in lower GHG emissions.

Wal-Mart Packaging Scorecard
In acknowledgment of the growing importance of sustainability to major retailers across the world, the firm derived Wal-Mart scorecard results based on the raw scores/evaluations generated for this analysis; the scores are based on interpretations made from the February 2007 draft scorecard and were accurate at the time of analysis.

Perhaps the metrics most important to potential customers are GHGs, recycled content and recovery. Natralock beat the PVC alternative in all three categories and overall scored approximately 65 percent higher (better) than the PVC system.

Based on the results of all comparisons and analysis in packaging fees, DfE metrics, and Wal-Mart scores, the report concludes that Natralock performs consistently better than the PVC packaging system.

“This type of comparative analysis will be extremely important to customers planning their packaging solution needs around sustainability or more specifically, the Wal-Mart scorecard criteria”, concluded Victor Bell, President of EPI.

Made primarily of renewable fiberboard laminated with a tear-resistant coating, Natralock is a theft-resistant package that features a small APET bubble, allowing consumers to still see the product contained inside.