LCA indicates lower environmental impact of Elopak D-PAK™ carton refill vs LDPE pouch
A comparative Life Cycle Assessment (LCA), shows the D-PAK™ carton refill system has a lower impact on global warming when compared to a plastic pouch. This article examines why Elopak commissioned this study, how the results confirm the sustainability performance of the D-PAK™ carton and how we will use the results to improve our cartons and filling systems.
The study, commissioned by Elopak and undertaken by Anthesis, an external sustainability consultancy, compared the environmental impact of using the 1 L D-PAK™ carton as a refill pack for a bottle of laundry detergent versus two sizes of the flexible LDPE pouches.
The study found that cartons significantly outperform pouches across several categories, notably global warming, CO2 footprint, resource scarcity impact, and plastic reduction.
What is a LCA?
A Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) is a method used to measure the environmental impacts of a product or process throughout its entire life cycle. The LCA can be used to analyse and compare the environmental impacts of different scenarios. The results can be used to identify hotspots for impact reduction and inform innovation and provide solutions for reducing impacts across a range of environmental indicators.
Scope of study
Elopak commissioned the European study to fully understand the environmental impacts of the use of the D-PAK™ as a refill pack in a non-food (detergent) refill system for a 1L PP bottle, and comparing these impacts to equivalent refill systems that use an LDPE pouch.
The functional unit of the study is “The packaging required to provide 11 litres of detergent to a customer’ and to identify the packaging impacts to refill 1L PP detergent bottled 10 times (original content plus refills).
The study compared three detergent refill systems; the Elopak D-PAK carton and two sizes of the flexible LDPE pouches (across 0%, 50% and 100% recycled content options).
Which three refill packs did the study test?
The packages were tested across a full set of 18 impact categories from the ReCiPe impact assessment method.
To be clear about the scope of study, Elopak specified what was included and what was excluded in the process.
Included:
Excluded:
Study boundaries
It was important to Elopak that this study employed a cradle-to-gate plus end-of-life system boundary to assess the environmental profiles associated with these stages in the life cycle of all the packaging formats.
1. Raw material extraction, processing, and production of individual packaging components (caps, labels, bottles etc)
2. Transport to manufacturing sites
3. Manufacturing of the finished packaging format
4. Transport of empty packaging to the detergent filling site
5. Transport of filled packaging to retail/distribution centre
6. Transport to end-of-life
7. End-of-life treatment of all packaging
Results - D-PAK™ is a responsible choice
The LCA study for the refill-system with a D-PAK™ found that the carton has a 24-28% lower global warming and 33-38% lower resource scarcity impact compared to the refill systems with 1.8L and 1L plastic pouches.
Using D-PAK™ cartons as a refill system uses 44% less plastic than LDPE pouches. A D-PAK™ carton contains 9.0g of plastic, compared to 20.1g of plastic in an LDPE pouch and 76.7g in a polypropylene bottle.
The overall results of the LCA show that using the D-PAK™ for as a refill package for a non-food product such as laundry detergent will result in a lower environmental impact than the 1L pouch across 11 of the impact categories, and a lower environmental impact than the 1.8L pouch across 14 impact categories.
How Elopak will use the LCA study
Following the launch of its strategy, Repackaging Tomorrow, in September 2024, Elopak is actively leveraging the global shift away from plastics as a central pillar of its growth strategy. This includes expanding the use of fiber-based packaging into new markets and product segments, responding to increasing demand from brands and consumers seeking sustainable alternatives.
As part of this initiative, the findings of the LCA will not only empower customers to communicate verified sustainability benefits but also enable improvements in the design and manufacturing of the D-PAK™ carton, reinforcing Elopak’s commitment to innovation and environmental responsibility.
The LCA can be found here.
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