PCKG joins as a sponsor in the upcoming historic Everglades Willoughby Expedition
PCKG, a South Florida packaging manufacturer, committed to supporting a team of five explorers, soon embarking on a daring and dangerous trip
FORT LAUDERDALE, FLORIDA, USA, October 20, 2022/ APnews.com/ -- PCKG, a South Florida packaging manufacturer, committed to supporting a team of five explorers, soon embarking on a daring and dangerous trip that has not been completed in 125 years. To better understand humanity’s impact on the most significant remaining subtropical wilderness in North America, PCKG, a consumer goods packaging manufacturer, will work with the 2022 Willoughby Expedition team to document and look for water pollutants that Hugh Willoughby couldn’t have foreseen, including microplastics, perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), pesticides, pharmaceuticals, and antibiotic-resistant genes, all of which are adversely affecting plant and animal species globally.
“Most packaging is currently designed to be used and discarded in a linear process, resulting in enormous waste and pollution,” says AJ Nelson, CEO of PCKG. While convenient for consumers, who do not currently have to bear the costs of this waste, it is a highly inefficient use of materials. Moving to more sustainable packaging requires thinking about the entire lifecycle of a product and its packaging so that the whole system can be circular by design. With PCKG facilitating, we can stay ahead of tightening regulations, improve growth prospects, and reduce the environmental footprint. “Documenting and studying how consumer goods packaging ends up in the environment will improve how we think and incentivize the way the circular economy needs to evolve,” says Nelson.
Nelson describes the growing push for recyclability and collectability: “For waste to turn into something useful rather than a pollutant or end up in a body of water such as the Everglades, it must first be collected and recycled. To date, a desire to reduce pollution, particularly plastic waste, has been the most critical driver in building out recycling capabilities.” “Reusing raw materials can dramatically reduce the carbon footprint of packaging, and packaging companies looking for ways to reduce their carbon footprint are turning to recycled raw materials. Using recycled plastic can almost halve emissions per tonne, while using recycled aluminum can reduce emissions per tonne by more than 75%. With glass, metal, and paper, all around 80% recycled. Plastic packaging is dragging the average down, as the multilayer materials that make it so good at providing a barrier and increasing shelf life make it very difficult to recycle.
About PCKG:
PCKG is a group of experts of manufacturers, engineers, designers, technologists, marketing, supply chain, and logistics for consumer packaged goods (CPG). Our industry experience gives us a unique ability to understand market trends and help brands like yours stand out and have your story heard through extraordinary design and packaging. To learn more about PCKG, visit pckg.co
About the 2022 Willoughby Expedition:
The 2022 Willoughby Expedition is a roughly 130-mile, coast-to-coast canoe trek across North America’s largest remaining subtropical wilderness. The expedition is in recognition of the 125th anniversary of Hugh de Laussat Willoughby’s daring Everglades crossing and the 75th anniversary of the creation of Everglades National Park. In an effort to document water chemistry changes resulting from human impact on the Everglades ecosystem that began in the late 19th century, the expedition team will sample and test for the same water constituents that Willoughby did 125 years ago. They will also sample and test for microplastics, PFAS, pesticides, pharmaceuticals, antibiotic-resistant genes, and other modern pollutants that Willoughby could not have foreseen adversely affecting plant and animal species.
To learn more about the team, the course, the science, and the man who inspired it all, visit willoughbyexpedition.org.
Elaina Vasile
PCKG