Benchmark calls for government push on the road to sustainability

In the race against climate change, the United Kingdom stands at a pivotal crossroads, according to Tim Barbary, managing director of Benchmark Consulting.

But he has frustrations: “How did a country built on the foundations of the industrial revolution transform into a global leader in environmental policy then fail to communicate the impact on a consumer pack?”

The UK’s environmental policies – from groundbreaking carbon reporting initiatives to the plastics tax – these interconnected strategies are designed to shape not just how people package and consume products, as well as how the entire economic system is shaped.

“In a world where ‘sustainability’ has become the buzzword du jour, the UK’s approach offers both cautionary tales and blueprints for success,” said Barbary.

He said while scientific awareness of the link between carbon emissions and global warming dates to the mid-20th century, it’s fair to say that the UK government has been officially acknowledging and acting on this knowledge since at least the late 1980s, with increasingly comprehensive policies developed from the 1990s onward.

The UK government since 2008 has since been considering and implementing various green initiatives, including measures like the plastics tax, Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR), Deposit Return Schemes (DRS), but these only address the waste he insists. “What about the carbon emissions from producing the packaging – after all its carbon emissions that is contributing to global warming”.

The circular economy
A Google search reveals the UK produces around 222 million tonnes of waste each year, with construction waste accounting for the majority. This waste is managed by over 4,000 facilities in the UK, including recycling plants, incinerators, and landfills.

The UK disposes of approximately 12 million tonnes of packaging waste every year.
This covers everything from chocolate bar wrappers to empty wine bottles and cardboard boxes. The amount of each

packaging waste type generated and how much is recycled varies depending on the material.

Other statistics show:
– The UK generates around 11 billion items of packaging waste annually
– Around two million tonnes of packaging waste in the UK are plastic packaging waste
– Another two million tonnes are from glass packaging waste
– Five million tonnes are paper and cardboard packaging – the rest is a mix of metal, wood, and other material packaging
– Government figures show that around 72% of glass packaging waste is recycled in the UK
– Whereas about 69% of paper and cardboard packaging also gets recycled
– Whilst only 44% of plastic packaging waste is currently recycled in the UK

To encourage right behaviours from business and consumers a number of initiatives have been referenced:

Plastics Tax
The UK Plastic Packaging Tax was first announced in the 2018 Budget.
After a period of consultation and development, it came into effect on April 1, 2022.

Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR)
EPR principles have been part of UK waste policy for many years, but the current push for a comprehensive EPR system began around 2018 as part of the Resources and Waste Strategy.
The government ran consultations in 2019 and 2021.
Implementation for packaging EPR tax incentives was set to begin in 2024, delayed to 2025 meaning it will have been in development for at least six years.

Deposit Return Scheme (DRS):
The UK government first announced plans for a DRS in 2018.
Scotland was initially set to implement its scheme in 2022, but this has been delayed.
England, Wales, and Northern Ireland are planning to introduce their schemes in 2025.
This means the initiative will have been in development for about seven years by the time of implementation.
Carbon reporting has been a focus for the UK government with various initiatives and regulations introduced over the years:
2008: Climate Change Act This landmark legislation set legally binding carbon reduction targets for the UK and laid the groundwork for future carbon reporting initiatives.

2013: Mandatory Greenhouse Gas (GHG) Reporting The Companies Act 2006 (Strategic Report and Directors’ Report) Regulations 2013 introduced mandatory carbon reporting for all UK quoted companies.

2016: Streamlined Energy and Carbon Reporting (SECR) is part of the government’s Clean Growth Strategy, aimed at simplifying carbon and energy reporting requirements.

2019: The SECR framework came into effect, replacing the Carbon Reduction Commitment (CRC) Energy Efficiency Scheme. This expanded the number of companies required to report on their energy use and carbon emissions.

2020: Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures (TCFD) – the UK government announced its intention to make TCFD-aligned disclosures mandatory across the economy by 2025, with a significant portion of mandatory requirements in place by 2023.

2021: With mandatory TCFD reporting, the UK became the first G20 country to make TCFD-aligned disclosures mandatory for certain large companies and financial institutions.

The UK government has been actively developing and implementing carbon reporting initiatives for over a decade, with roots going back to the Climate Change Act of 2008. “Sadly, the biggest threat to humanity is taking the longest to implement,” said Barbary.

The UK Industrial Decarbonisation Strategy
The UK Industrial Decarbonisation Strategy was published in March 2021, and is a crucial part of the government’s overall approach to reducing carbon emissions.

Barbary points out that while it’s not directly a carbon reporting initiative, it’s closely linked to and supported by the carbon reporting frameworks by:

Building on existing frameworks:
The strategy builds upon the foundations laid by earlier initiatives like the Climate Change Act and various carbon reporting requirements.

It informs future reporting:
As the strategy is implemented, it’s likely to influence future carbon reporting requirements, especially for industrial sectors.

It uses reported data
The data gathered through existing carbon reporting mechanisms helps inform the strategy and will be crucial for monitoring its progress.

Encourages transparency
The strategy emphasises the importance of clear, consistent reporting to track progress and drive change.

Packagingis a sector of specific focus
Unlike broader carbon reporting requirements, this strategy provides more detailed, sector-specific pathways for decarbonisation.

The Industrial Decarbonisation Strategy represents a shift from general emissions reporting to more targeted, action-oriented planning for specific industrial sectors.

Barbary said it requires granular data (SKU), accurately calculated, consistently (see below UK Net Zero Policy) and as a minimum verified but preferred is calculated by authentic third parties. Disappointingly few businesses have engaged with this policy across their portfolios.

“It should complement existing reporting frameworks by providing a roadmap for how industries can achieve the reductions they’re reporting on, e.g. financial reporting by using granular data, accurately calculated, reported transparently and consistently year on year; disappointingly few businesses have engaged with this policy across their portfolios.”

The UK’s Net Zero policy
The UK’s Net Zero policy is a significant and relatively recent development in the country’s approach to addressing climate change.

On June 27, 2019, the UK became the first major economy to pass laws to end its contribution to global warming
by 2050.

In recent developments, in September 2022, the High Court ordered the government to outline exactly how its policies will achieve the net zero target, following a legal challenge. This has led to ongoing revisions and updates to the strategy.

The Green Claims Code
The Green Claims Code, introduced in September 2021, aligns with the other initiatives in several ways.

Barbary said the introduction of the Green Claims Code demonstrates the UK government’s holistic approach to environmental policy. While other initiatives focus on specific areas like carbon emissions or waste management, the Green Claims Code covers how businesses communicate about all these efforts, ensuring that progress in these areas is represented accurately to the public.

“The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) in the UK has not actually publicly issued any fines specifically for greenwashing under the Green Claims Code. The lack of fines doesn’t mean the Green Claims Code hasn’t been effective. Many businesses have proactively reviewed and adjusted their environmental claims to ensure compliance with the code, often in response to CMA investigations or general guidance.

“Unfortunately, this has also led to Green hushing, this is where a company chooses not to publicise their environmental, social, and governance (ESG) information. This can be done intentionally or unintentionally, and it can have negative consequences for a company’s reputation, business opportunities, and cost of capital.”

Government policy

Developments in 2024
In 2024, the Labour government announced several new bills that are relevant to net zero. These included:
Great British Energy Bill (to set up a publicly owned clean power company to accelerate investment in renewable energy)
Crown Estate Bill (to remove restrictions and allow for easier investment in public infrastructure
Sustainable Aviation Fuel (Revenue Support Mechanism) Bill (to support the production of this fuel).
The government also announced it would pursue other policies that affect climate change mitigation and adaptation, including policies on home insulation, nature and biodiversity, land management, and the water sector.

Net zero targets
Currently all of the UK must meet net zero by 2050, in line with the target set out in legislation. In addition to the UK-wide target, Scotland has set its own and is aiming to become a net zero economy by 2045.

The UK has also committed to a 68% reduction in emissions by 2030, as part of its Nationally Determined Contribution towards the Paris Agreement.

Alongside these headline targets, the UK has set interim ‘carbon budgets’ which cap the emissions within different carbon budgetary periods). The current fourth carbon budget requires a 52% reduction in emissions by 2027, while the sixth carbon budget requires a 78% reduction by 2037.

Between November 2024 and by February 2025, the government needs to set a new Nationally Determined Contribution for 2035.

Additionally, in 2025 the government is due to agree the seventh carbon budget, which will cover the period from 2038-2042.

So does Barbary believe packaging can be sustainable? “Yes! First we must recognise appropriate packaging is a necessity: attributes like protection, transportation, handling, marketing, safety, compliance, environmental considerations, extends product shelf life, and cost management.

“To avoid claims of greenwashing, packaging businesses need to align themselves with the United Nations Brundtland Commission (1987) who defined sustainability as ‘meeting the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs’.”

To transparently demonstrate sustainability initiatives businesses needs to:
– Have signed up to the Net Zero journey towards 2050.
– Recognised sustainability is not a simple ROI in 12 months – it’s here to stay.
– Adopted Life Cycle Assessment as a means of gathering, calculating and reporting the data.
– Accepted significant change is inevitable not just materials but processes, procedures and reporting
– Embraced the circular economy by designing with the end in mind to avoid unnecessary waste being incinerated or sent to landfill.
– Scope 3 emissions often represent the largest source of emissions associated with packaging materials, as they encompass the entire life cycle of the packaging.
– Reducing Scope 3 emissions requires collaboration with suppliers, customers, and other stakeholders to optimise packaging design, improve recycling rates, and minimize waste.

Barbary said it is crucial to select low-carbon materials and optimise packaging design to minimise material use, as well as improve energy efficiency and use renewable energy in packaging manufacturing processes, as well as collaborate with suppliers and customers to reduce emissions in the packaging life cycle.

“Implementing circular economy principles, such as increasing the use of recycled content and improving end-of-life management of packaging materials must be the goal, and by addressing emissions across all scopes, the packaging industry can contribute to the global effort to mitigate climate change and transition towards a more sustainable future.”

The path to sustainability
“The path to sustainability isn’t just about policies and numbers – it’s about transformation. Good businesses manage their costs at the granular level; to manage the carbon footprint in the same approach is necessary.”
There are numerous benefits of granular data when it’s accurately calculated and transparently reported, as it often pays for itself.

Operational benefits include:
– Enables precise process optimisation
– Allows identification of specific inefficiencies
– Facilitates accurate resource allocation
– Supports detailed performance benchmarking
– Enables early detection of anomalies or issues

Decision making advantages:
– Provides foundation for evidence-based decisions
– Allows for more accurate forecasting
– Enables better risk assessment
– Supports sophisticated predictive modelling
– Facilitates targeted improvement strategies

Financial impact:
– Improves cost allocation accuracy
– Enables precise profitability analysis
– Supports detailed ROI calculations
– Allows better budget optimization
– Facilitates accurate pricing strategies
– Compliance and reporting:
– Ensures regulatory compliance with detailed evidence
– Supports audit requirements
– Enables accurate sustainability reporting
– Facilitates transparent stakeholder communication
– Provides traceability for quality assurance

Strategic value:
– Reveals hidden patterns and trends
– Supports innovation through detailed insights
– Enables competitive advantage through better understanding
– Facilitates data-driven strategy development
– Allows precise market segmentation

Stakeholder benefits:
– Builds trust through transparency
– Enables detailed stakeholder reporting
– Supports informed investor decisions
– Facilitates better customer understanding
– Enables precise impact measurement

Barbary said the UK’s journey from tentative environmental acknowledgments in the 1980s to today’s comprehensive net-zero commitments demonstrates both the challenges and possibilities of systematic change.

He said while initiatives like the Green Claims Code and Extended Producer Responsibility schemes show promise, their success ultimately depends on the collective will of businesses, governments, and consumers to embrace genuine transformation.

“By understanding where there is a commercial cost there will be a carbon footprint and recognising if one can measure it – one can then improve it. The packaging industry stands at the forefront of this revolution, where sustainability isn’t just an option – it’s an imperative. The road ahead demands more than superficial changes; it requires a fundamental rethinking of ]how we design, produce, and dispose of packaging materials. Through granular data collection, accurately calculated and transparent carbon reporting, along with an authentic third-party verification, we can move beyond greenwashind to create truly sustainable solutions for our children and children’s children.”

He said as we look toward 2050’s net-zero target, one thing becomes clear: the future of packaging isn’t just about ‘maintaining the status quo – it’s about reimagining what’s possible’.

“For businesses ready to embrace this challenge, the opportunity isn’t just to survive in a changing market, but to lead the way in creating a more sustainable future for generations to come. The question isn’t whether packaging can be sustainable – it’s whether we have the courage and commitment to make it so.”