Glass is confirmed as the preferred food packaging material for 8 out of 10 European consumers. The trend is noted by InSites research commissioned by the European Container Glass Federation (FEVE) for the Friends of Glass consumer platform.
The survey, conducted in 2022, involved more than 4,000 consumers in 13 European countries-Austria, Croatia, the Czech Republic, France, Germany, Italy, Poland, Portugal, Slovakia, Spain, Switzerland, Turkey, and the United Kingdom.
The virtues of glass packaging
Driving three-quarters of European consumers and 85 percent of Italian consumers is the belief that glass is an integral part of a healthy lifestyle because it is fully recyclable, effectively recycled throughout Europe and safe once recycled.
So much appreciation is reflected in the numbers. Glass was the only packaging material to experience an average growth of 8% (13% in Italy) over the past 3 years in the 13 countries covered by the research. Other packaging materials, however, faced a decline of between 24 and 41 percent.
Glass is forever
Infinite recyclability is a feature that is highly valued by consumers, especially because it is free of the risk of contaminant release, as is the case with plastic.
Among the respondents,
- half say they prefer glass precisely because of its perfect recyclability,
- Eight out of 10 say they ‘always’ or ‘often’ recycle their glass packaging, and Italy, with 9 out of 10 consumers, is confirmed as the most ‘recycling’ country, with a record recycling rate, as we have seen,
- 82 percent (86 percent in Italy) appreciate the easy understanding of proper glass delivery in separate collection. Clarity, however, is latent in other packaging materials and will (hopefully) be resolved by 2023, when new rules on environmental labeling of packaging come into effect.
Sustainability driver of procurement
According to the survey, health and product preservation are seen as a deciding factor in food and beverage purchases.
The sample surveyed demonstrates an evolved and broad understanding of the concept of sustainability:
- Six out of 10 consumers consider reducing food waste, recycling and protecting health to be the key elements of sustainability (for Italians there is also reducing the use of non-biodegradable disposable plastic),
- More than a third of consumers surveyed said they choose more glass because it is inert and because it keeps products safer and longer, thus reducing food waste.
The call for sustainability is also aimed at businesses:
- 80 percent of respondents say companies have a moral obligation to use sustainable packaging (85 percent in Italy),
- almost as many (78 percent) would like companies to put sustainability credentials on their packaging (84 percent in Italy).
A product packaged in glass is more trusted by 65 percent of the sample and 70 percent of Italians.
The top-four foods with glass packaging
The ranking of favorite foods when packaged in glass includes.
- dairy products, with 65 percent of preferences at the European level (especially in Turkey and Austria),
- soft drinks, with 54 percent (mainly in Turkey and the United Kingdom),
- sauces with 50 percent (Turkey and Poland at the top),
- oil (especially in Spain) with 47 percent.
Wine and beer, Italians prefer glass
The top-four also applies in Italy. But the Belpaese is first in Europe in the choice of the glass-wine pair with 44 percent of preferences against a European average of 32 percent (at the bottom of the ranking is Switzerland with just 20 percent of preferences). Packaging in glass bottles, after all, was found in one study to be the best solution for preserving the organoleptic qualities of wine.
Same preference applies to beer. 42 percent of Italians prefer it in glass (34 percent the European average). In total, about 6 out of 10 Italians prefer products packaged in glass.
Professional journalist since January 1995, he has worked for newspapers (Il Messaggero, Paese Sera, La Stampa) and periodicals (NumeroUno, Il Salvagente). She is the author of journalistic surveys on food, she has published the book "Reading labels to know what we eat".
