A life cycle assessment of glass packaging by O-I used a cradle-to-cradle approach to allow the ‘first true comparisons’ of glass with aluminum and plastics, the world’s largest manufacturer of glass packaging has claimed.
A global study measured the carbon emissions generated from the extraction of raw materials to the reuse or recycling of the container. Its findings form the basis of a new sustainability programme soon to be revealed by O-I.
The study used manufacturing and publicly available data on the production of aluminum and PET to compare glass with the competing packaging materials. The LCA model was tested and validated by AMR Research, ‘a respected firm specialising in supply chain and sustainability research’, states O-I.
In addition, the LCA is said to show that transporting finished glass containers comprises 4-5% of the complete carbon footprint of glass packaging. And every 10% of recycled glass used in production cuts carbon emissions by about 5% and reduces energy use by some 3%.
With its current use of recycled glass ‘an industry leading’ 36% globally, this ‘generates enough energy savings to completely offset the emissions produced by finished goods transportation’, states O-I.
“Our assessment shows that glass clearly has the most favourable carbon footprint,” said Jay Scripter, O-I vice president of sustainability. “When you look at the complete life cycle of glass, commonly held misconceptions are disproved. Food and beverage makers concerned about sustainability should choose glass.”
