Critical Debates in Design - task 6 : Product packaging

Packaging design serves to protect, store and transport goods and is the means by which the marketing strategy for a consumer brand is visually communicated. However, packaging is an environmental problem because the materials that make it are often from limited resources (like oil which is used to make plastic, or trees that are turned into cardboard and sometimes not replaced with new trees), and once it’s used, packaging tends to end up on landfill sites rather than being recycled.

Packaging designers are the design professionals that understand how to connect form and structure, materials, color, imagery, typography and ancillary design elements with product information to create a marketable design for a consumer product.


Anyhow, it’s important for designer to look at the impact that company’s packaging products have on the planet by using less material, shipping with smaller packaging, being free of many toxic substances, and being as energy efficient and recyclable as possible. With every production process, the progress should be done toward minimizing our environmental impact (Green packaging).

Due to the essential of environmental concern, most company consider in reducing the impact their products have on the environment by measuring company's Carbon footprint, which is, a measure of the impact our activities have on the environment, and in particular climate change. It relates to the amount of greenhouse gases produced in our day-to-day lives through burning fossil fuels for electricity, heating and transportation etc.


Furthermore, one of the important informations provided on packaging is Traffic light labelling (on food and drink labels), which is a starting point to help consumers to see how healthy or unhealthy their food or drink is. The traffic light colours tell consumers whether the product has low, medium or high amounts of fat, saturated fat, sugars and salt.

Regarding packaging and labelling, under the Consumer Protection from Unfair Trading Regulations any descriptions of goods you trade must be accurate - it's a criminal offence if they're not.

This applies to both the writing and the illustrations on your packaging and labelling. Among other things, you must not be misleading about:
• quantity or size
• composition
• method of manufacture
• place and date of manufacture
• fitness for stated purpose
• endorsements by people or organisations
The law applies to you if you sell goods to the public or manufacture goods.

Origin marking
In most circumstances, there is no legal requirement in the UK or anywhere else in the European Union for goods to be marked with an indication of their origin-but you can do so if you wish. However, if you do, the origin markings must be accurate or you will be committing a criminal offence under the Consumer Protection from Unfair Trading Regulations.

Pricing
It is also an offence to give consumers a misleading price indication about goods and services, including immoveable property, rights and obligations.