Here, we take a look at the some of the companies who have yet to jump on the bandwagon to the reusable and green materials for their packaging, check out these wasteful and excessive packaging examples.
There is no doubt about it: companies are slowly but surely making the move to more minimalist yet more efficient packaging design. With outlets on social media making it easy to call out companies for distasteful overuse of natural resources, organizations are now working hard to be eco-friendly and effective with their packaging.
1. Amazon
Despite being beloved by most for its bevy of products and incredible two-day shipping with the revolutionary Amazon Prime, Amazon itself provides us with some of the most egregious wasteful packaging examples.
The online mega-retailer has been criticized for years about sending the tiniest of objects in massive cardboard boxes, or putting small objects in large boxes and then using wasteful plastic packing pillows to take up the rest of the free space. In the summer of 2016, Amazon vowed it would stop sending small objects in inappropriately sized boxes as soon as possible.
Many consumers will no doubt be on the lookout for further Amazon excessive packaging examples.
2. Capri Sun
It may seem nearly impossible for a simple juice drink to be on this list of excessive packaging examples. However, Capri Sun is one of the worst offenders of excessive packaging examples as it uses multiple natural resources to achieve the metallic juice pouch.
The juice pouch is made of aluminum and plastic melted down together, which makes the pouches nearly impossible to recycle. To make matters worse, Capri Sun packs often come in thick cardboard boxes that are simply a waste of paper products. One source has even claimed that each year enough Capri Suns can be found in landfills to wrap around the earth five times.
3. Electronics
How many times have you purchased a USB stick, headphones, or other small electronic and then had to cut your way through multiple layers of plastic and cardboard just to retrieve your purchase? Probably too many times to count.
These small electronics are yet another offender in the wasteful packaging examples category. Some companies, like Apple, are now trying to use 100% recyclable materials for their packaging, but the electronics world still has a some work to do when it comes to more sustainable packaging.
4. Wine and Country Gift Baskets
We all love receiving gift baskets. It makes us feel remembered and valued by friends and family. However, professional gift basket companies like Wine and Country Gift Baskets frequently provide excessive packaging examples.
The cardboard shipping box, plastic styrofoam peanuts, plastic wrap around the gift basket, and then paper filling of the basket all add up to being extremely wasteful. It can be difficult to recycle styrofoam peanuts as well as plastic wrap. These excessive packaging examples should be rectified and replaced with recycled packaging and/or organic foam packaging.
What are some other excessive packaging examples you have come across? We want to hear from you! Leave us a note in the comments.