Consumers want packaging that is easy to recycle. Otherwise they will go to the competition

The latest consumer survey shows that purchasing decisions are increasingly being made at the packaging level. Consumers are no longer driven solely by price, product quality or brand sentiment - what the product is packaged in is becoming just as important, if not more important. If the packaging is not eco-friendly and does not meet their environmental expectations, they are ready to reach for an alternative without hesitation.

Recycling above all

The European Association of Carton and Cardboard Packaging Manufacturers Pro Carton conducted a study The Power of Packaging. What Makes European Consumers Trust, Stay, or Switch?, which provides an understanding of how European consumers perceive the environmental aspects of packaging and packaging materials. It shows that in 2026, the most important packaging features for consumers are:

• ease of recycling (64%),
• made from renewable raw materials (40%),
• resealable (39%),
• convenience of opening (35%).

This means that messages about recycling and the origin of raw materials on packaging cease to be a marketing add-on and start to determine consumers' everyday choices and have a real impact on brand image. However, this impact can be twofold, and its nature depends mainly on the reliability of the producer. Truly sustainable packaging builds trust in the product and increases customer loyalty (as declared by 66% respondents). Packaging greenwashing, on the other hand, can alienate consumers not only from the product itself, but also from the brand as a whole. Gen-Z is definitely at the forefront of this issue. one in three 17-29 year olds abandons a purchase if they suspect greenwashing[i].

Packaging more important than the product? The new reality in the B2C sector

As it turns out, many consumers judge an entire product by its packaging. However, this is not about aesthetics or design, but about ecology and sustainability. When reaching for a packaged product, as many as 85% of the 5,000 respondents think about its impact on the climate, and 15% say they do so at every opportunity. Consideration is also followed by action -. 37% respondents admitted that they had swapped the product they were currently buying for a competing brand precisely because of concerns about its packaging. Again, Gen-Z representatives were the most radical on this issue, with as many as 54% of them abandoning their purchase because of the packaging. The most common allegations were:

• packaging not recyclable (53%),
• excessive packaging (39%),
• use of plastic (33%).

Unrecyclable, excessive or plastic packaging can therefore directly reduce sales, and this even if the product itself meets all consumers' quality expectations.

Consumers and legislation are beginning to speak with one voice

The conclusions of Pro Carton's study clearly coincide with the direction of legislative changes introduced in recent years in the European Union -. packaging is to be minimised, easily recycled and made of sustainable materials. Thus, manufacturers are under increasing pressure and need to make green changes not only because of potential penalties for non-compliant packaging, but also because of the real risk of a loss of competitiveness and revenue.

In some cases, consumer expectations are ahead of legislation. A good example of this is the design of packaging with a view to later recycling - according to the PPWR, businesses only have to eco-design packaging from 1 January 2030, but according to consumers, they should be doing this now.

Beats plastic head-on and wins the hearts of end-users - 84% consumers choose paper

The data is clear - 84% of respondents prefer to buy a product wrapped in paper rather than the same product in plastic. This percentage increases with the age of the respondents, and is as high as 92% among seniors.

The popularity of paper is supported not only by its real environmental potential, but also by good PR. Significant This is because the majority of consumers (86-87%) believe that paper, cardboard and corrugated board packaging will indeed be recycled at the end of its life cycle. Respondents put less faith in glass (82%), paper cups (75%), metal (62%), rigid plastics (60%), plastic beverage cups (54%) and flexible plastics (53%).

Ecological packaging as a to be or not to be for the producer and his brand

In light of this data, eco-design of packaging is becoming a natural response to both market expectations and upcoming legislative requirements. Entrepreneurs are therefore faced with the challenge of reconciling multiple, sometimes conflicting functions in a single optimised package. In practice, this means switching to simpler material structures (and preferably monomaterials), reducing the use of additives and elements that make it difficult to recycle, and reducing the weight and volume of packaging to the minimum necessary for product protection. And all this while maintaining the distinguishing features of a manufacturer's packaging on the shop shelf, which seems difficult to achieve. Why?

PPWR Regulation may result in the standardisation and unification of packaging for products in the same category in terms of shape, colour, type of closure and type of label, among others. The minimisation of packaging alone will reduce the space previously devoted to the marketing function. At the same time, it is worth bearing in mind that space will shrink even further with the introduction of new mandatory segregation labels and digital product passports. Manufacturers who want to maintain sales levels in the future and remain competitive should therefore start work on eco-design as soon as possible - as long as long vacatio legis gives them plenty of time to implement new, more environmentally friendly packaging, consumers expect and even demand it today. If they do not receive them, they will unsentimentally switch to competitors' products.

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Sources:

1. Greenwashing? Not for Gen Z. Young consumers bet on transparency [SURVEY]., https://omnichannelnews.pl/2025/11/04/greenwashing-nie-dla-gen-z-mlodzi-konsumenci-stawiaja-na-transparentnosc-badanie/
2. Pro Carton, The Power of Packaging What Makes European Consumers Trust, Stay, or Switch?, https://www.procarton.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/Pro-Carton-Consumer-Study-2026-Final-Edit-1.pdf