Environment is powerful magnet for packaging award entries

An upsurge in environment-related pack designs, and a consequent fivefold increase in entries in this area, has led the organisers of the Starpack packaging awards to split the category in two for 2008.

Over 50 entries had the environment as their main focus. This compares with 17 entries for the same category last year. So the judges decided there should be two awards within the category: one for packaging optimisation, and one for other, more lateral, new developments.

Leading the judges, director of design consultancy PI3 Steve Kelsey explains: "The first of these consists of good, logical, linear development work, while the second includes areas such as reusability and intelligent materials adaptations."

The more competitive field also meant that tighter criteria had to be applied to the judging process. "In both cases, we looked at net environmental impact, including general applicability, scale and any proprietary limitations on wider usage," says Kelsey.

Starpack's environment category is sponsored by the Waste & Resources Action Programme (WRAP). Of the number of entries, WRAP special adviser Mark Barthel says: "This shows that the importance of environmental performance and sustainable packaging are now widely recognised by the packaging industry and squarely on the boardroom agenda of major brands and retailers."

The Starpack 2008 awards ceremony will take place in London on May 22.