Businesses across the globe are being scrutinised by scientists, governments, and several organizations for their environmental impact. And it’s time to turn to responsible development and eco-friendly packaging choices. Hawaii is an important tourist destination, and there is a lot of movement of goods. There is a need for continuous packaging and shipping. When it comes to shipping options, manufacturers are worried about the environmental effects of the packaging they use and how can they reduce their carbon footprint. Manufacturers are now using corrugated boxes in Hawaii to minimize the toxic and non-biodegradable waste they produce. And the government also supports the usage of less plastic and other harmful materials.
Manufacturing accounts for 2.03% of the overall output in Hawaii, and this sector employs 2.16% of the total workforce in the state. As of 2018-19, there are an average of 14,000 manufacturing employees in Hawaii.
The major manufacturing sectors in Hawaii are:
- Petroleum and coal products
- Food, beverage & tobacco items
- Nonmetallic mineral products
- Chemicals
- Printing and related support activities
If all manufacturers use corrugated boxes in Hawaii, they can minimise the effect on the environment to a certain level.
Now, what are the environmental advantages of using corrugated packaging? To understand the benefits of these boxes, you must know what corrugated boxes are.
Corrugated boxes
Corrugated means “making or forming into wrinkles or folds or alternating grooves and ridges.” Hence, a corrugated box has small air-filled groove rows running the length of the material. Usually, these boxes are made of paperboard and have three layers.
Manufacturers use these boxes as shipping containers. And it offers excellent strength and rigidity and protects the product/item inside.
The advantages of corrugated boxes can be given as following points:
These boxes are recyclable.
The corrugated boxes are already made of recycled materials and can be recycled again. Thus, the waste from these boxes is almost zero. Newspapers, notebooks, paper bags, and several items are recycled to make these boxes, and these boxes are solid/strong because of their composition/form. Most of these boxes are made sans bleaches or dyes to be disposed of more sustainably than other kinds of materials.
These boxes are renewable and reusable.
These boxes are manufactured from the paper pulp of timber from pine trees, but you can create it from woodchips and leftover materials from paper-making processes. Most of these boxes are made up of around seventy to a hundred per cent of recycled material.
They are reusable as most of these boxes are collapsible and can be reformed into boxes. Unless there are tears and cut in the box, it can be folded and fixed back to its previous shape.
Corrugated boxes help save energy.
The recycling of these boxes consumes the least amount of energy. Rather than making boxes from 100% virgin materials, most manufacturers use locally collected recycled items to minimise environmental damage and excess transportation.
The collapsible and reusable properties help decrease the need for manufacturing new boxes. The manufacturers can collect the boxes through different channels and reuse them. They also offer rewards for collecting the boxes and sending them back; the customers or any waste management organization can take this opportunity to help the environment by sending back the boxes to the nearby manufacturers.
These are the advantages of corrugated boxes. And this is why the manufacturers have turned into these boxes for packaging and shipping. If you are concerned about the environment, only use corrugated boxes for shipping.