Recyclability is the defining factor for sustainability according to Gen Z

Gen Zs value packaging recyclability and is their reference point for how ‘green’ they perceive a packaging item to be. For this generation of consumers, recycling has become more habitual than the generations before them, but does it truly deliver on making the sustainable gains as much as Gen Zs believe?  

Our research, “The Recommerce Generation: How Gen Z are shaping the future of packaging”, shows that over a third of Gen Zs believe that recyclability would have the biggest impact on improving the sustainability of packaging used to deliver online fashion items. This is followed by making products from renewable materials and, thirdly, making packaging that can be recycled via a household, supermarket, or local recycling system as the most important ‘green’ trait for plastic packaging.  

Anthony Brimelow, Commercial Director at Duo UK explains: “The value that Gen Zs place on recycling has created something of a double-edged sword for plastic. The general market tendency to focus on recyclability creates an opportunity for brands and retailers to better educate this generation about the wider carbon saving and environmental performance benefits of plastic packaging, or renewable alternatives, compared to other materials.  However, this opportunity is also shadowed by an unhealthy obsession that focuses too much on dealing with packaging at the end of the chain, when we should in fact be concentrating more on reduction and efficiency before a material is even selected as the right packaging solution. The challenge for retailers is to engage and educate consumers that there’s much more to resourcefulness and sustainability than simply recycling something.”  

How should brands and retailers educate and engage consumers? We explore the opportunities to engage with Gen Zs and successfully take them on a brands sustainability journey in our latest research report which you can download for free here