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Audit-Ready Carbon Reporting for Packaging Manufacturers

Track aluminum, plastic, glass, and paper packaging manufacturing energy, material supply chain emissions, and recycled content for container operations.

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The Industry Hotspot: Material Production and Recycled Content

Material dominates packaging footprint

Packaging carbon footprints concentrate in raw material production. Virgin aluminum smelting consumes substantial electricity. Recycled aluminum requires fraction of virgin energy. Plastic resins from petroleum polymerization have moderate carbon intensity. Glass melting uses high temperatures with natural gas fuel. Paperboard from wood pulp or recycled fiber varies by source. Manufacturing operations form materials into containers consuming additional energy. Can manufacturing uses stamping and coating. Blow molding creates plastic bottles. Glass furnaces operate continuously. Corrugating combines linerboard layers. Packaging weight and recycled content determine product carbon footprint. Lightweight designs reduce material per unit. High recycled content lowers embodied emissions. NetNada tracks material sourcing and recycled content, monitors manufacturing facility energy, calculates product carbon intensity per container, and reports packaging lifecycle emissions.

SASB Industry Definition

The Containers & Packaging industry manufactures metal cans, plastic bottles and containers, glass bottles, paper packaging, and corrugated boxes. Manufacturing includes forming aluminum cans, blow-molding PET bottles, melting glass, and converting paperboard. Emissions concentrate in material production with aluminum smelting, plastic polymerization, glass melting, and pulp processing. Recycled content reduces material embodied emissions. Product lightweighting and reusable systems offer additional reduction opportunities.

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Industry-Specific Carbon Accounting

No generic solutions. Metrics, data sources, and reporting aligned to Containers & Packaging operations.

Aluminum Can Recycled Content

Aluminum cans dominate beverage packaging with substantial material footprint. Virgin aluminum smelting requires high electricity consumption. Recycled aluminum melting uses fraction of virgin production energy. Track aluminum sourcing and recycled content by supplier. Calculate material footprint accounting for recycled percentage. Report can carbon intensity per unit.

Recycled aluminum content percentage

Plastic Resin Supply Chain

PET, HDPE, and PP resins for bottles and containers come from petroleum polymerization. Virgin resin production has moderate carbon intensity. Recycled plastic (rPET, rHDPE) reduces material emissions but requires collection and reprocessing. Track resin sourcing and recycled content. Apply emission factors by resin type and recycled percentage. Calculate bottle material footprint.

Plastic resin emissions by type

Glass Furnace Energy Consumption

Glass melting requires high temperatures from natural gas furnaces. Furnaces operate continuously with batch changes. Cullet (recycled glass) reduces melting temperature and energy versus virgin materials. Track furnace fuel consumption and cullet percentage. Calculate glass emissions per tonne including material and melting energy.

Glass furnace fuel and cullet tracked

Corrugated Box Manufacturing

Corrugated packaging combines linerboard and medium paper in fluted structure. Paperboard comes from virgin pulp or recycled fiber. Corrugating operations consume steam and electricity for adhesion and forming. Track fiber sourcing by recycled content. Monitor corrugate plant energy. Calculate box carbon footprint per square meter.

Corrugate fiber content and energy

Packaging Lightweighting Carbon Benefit

Reducing packaging weight lowers material consumption and associated emissions. Thinner aluminum cans, lightweight PET bottles, and optimized paperboard deliver products with less material. Lightweighting must maintain package performance and protection. Track packaging weight trends by product category. Calculate material savings and emission reductions from lightweighting programs.

Weight reduction trends tracked

SASB RT-CP Metrics Automation

Auto-generate disclosure including gross Scope 1 and 2 emissions, production volumes by material type, percentage recycled content, packaging weight per unit trends, and reusable packaging programs. Footnotes cite manufacturing facilities and product categories.

SASB RT-CP compliant

Product Features for Containers & Packaging

Use Carbon Data Uploader to import material sourcing data, recycled content records, manufacturing facility energy bills, and production volumes for automated packaging emissions. Learn more →

The Activity Calculator applies factors for aluminum, plastic resins, glass, paperboard, and forming energy—calculating packaging product carbon footprints by container type. Learn more →

Related Solutions

See our Carbon Accounting solution for packaging manufacturing emissions tracking from material supply chains through forming and product carbon intensity.

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Containers & Packaging Case Studies

How entities in this industry use NetNada to solve carbon accounting challenges.

Aluminum Can Manufacturer (Beverage cans for soft drink and beer brands, Regional manufacturing network, High recycled content targets)

Challenge

Brand owner customers required packaging carbon footprints for product lifecycle assessments. Aluminum material represented largest footprint component. Recycled content reduced emissions but sourcing varied by region. Manufacturing energy needed allocation to can production volumes.

Solution

Implemented product carbon accounting tracking aluminum sourcing by recycled content percentage. Applied emission factors for virgin versus recycled aluminum. Monitored manufacturing facility energy per thousand cans produced. Calculated can carbon footprint including material and forming.

Result

Generated can carbon intensity per unit showing recycled content as primary reduction lever. Demonstrated substantial emission reduction from high recycled aluminum versus virgin material. Optimized aluminum sourcing toward higher recycled content suppliers. Provided brand owners with packaging carbon data supporting beverage product footprints and sustainability marketing claims.

PET Bottle Manufacturer (Plastic bottles for beverages and consumer products, Lightweighting programs, rPET adoption)

Challenge

Consumer packaged goods customers demanded lower-carbon packaging. Virgin PET resin from petroleum had baseline carbon intensity. Recycled PET (rPET) offered emission reduction but availability and cost varied. Lightweighting reduced material but required process optimization.

Solution

Deployed bottle carbon accounting separating resin material from manufacturing. Tracked PET sourcing documenting virgin versus recycled percentages. Monitored bottle weights across product lines. Calculated carbon footprint per bottle accounting for resin mix and weight. Modeled scenarios with increased rPET content and lightweighting.

Result

Established bottle carbon footprint baseline showing resin as dominant component. Implemented lightweighting reducing average bottle weight while maintaining performance. Increased rPET content in product portfolio lowering average bottle emissions. Provided customers with packaging carbon data and reduction roadmap supporting corporate sustainability commitments.

SASB Disclosure Topics for Containers & Packaging

Material sustainability topics beyond emissions that investors and stakeholders expect disclosed per SASB standards.

Greenhouse Gas Emissions

environment

Track Scope 1 from manufacturing facility fuel combustion and process heat. Report Scope 2 from electricity for forming and converting. Calculate Scope 3 from aluminum, plastics, glass, and paperboard materials. Report emissions per tonne packaging produced.

Materials and Recycled Content

environment

Track percentage of aluminum, plastic, glass, and paper from recycled sources. Monitor virgin material sourcing. Report material recovery rates in key markets.

Product Lightweighting

business model

Report packaging weight reduction trends by product category. Track material-to-product ratios. Disclose lightweighting R&D and implementation.

Reusable Packaging Systems

business model

Monitor reusable container programs and return rates. Track lifecycle comparisons versus single-use alternatives. Report reusable packaging revenue.

Product Recyclability

environment

Disclose packaging recyclability by material type and geography. Report design for recycling initiatives. Track packaging recovery infrastructure investment.

Customer Engagement

social

Report customer sustainability programs and packaging optimization partnerships. Track brand owner sustainability requirements compliance. Disclose packaging take-back or deposit programs.

NetNada tracks all SASB material topics, not just emissions. Our platform supports disclosure across environmental, social, governance, and business model topics relevant to your industry.

Containers & Packaging FAQs

Common questions about carbon accounting for this industry

How does recycled content affect packaging carbon footprint?
Recycled materials require substantially less energy than virgin material production. Aluminum recycling uses fraction of virgin smelting energy avoiding bauxite mining and electrolytic reduction. Plastic recycling avoids petroleum extraction and polymerization. Glass cullet reduces melting temperature and energy. Paper recycling avoids pulp processing emissions. Recycled content percentage directly reduces material embodied emissions. Track sourcing and apply factors by virgin versus recycled. Report recycled content and carbon benefit.
Why does packaging weight matter for carbon footprint?
Packaging weight determines material quantity with proportional embodied emissions. Lighter packaging requires less aluminum, plastic, glass, or paper per unit. Lightweighting reduces material production emissions without eliminating packaging function. However, excessive lightweighting may compromise package protection leading to product damage and waste. Optimal packaging balances material minimization with product protection. Track weight trends by product category. Calculate emission savings from lightweighting programs. Report weight reduction while maintaining performance.
Should packaging manufacturers report end-of-life emissions?
Scope 3 Category 12 (End-of-Life Treatment) includes packaging disposal after consumer use. End-of-life pathway determines emissions: Recycling: Avoids virgin material production in circular economy. Benefits accrue to recycled content users. Landfill: Minimal emissions for inert materials. Organic materials may generate methane. Incineration: Releases carbon from plastic and paper combustion. May displace fossil energy in waste-to-energy systems. Most packaging companies report: Recyclability by material type and region. Design for recycling initiatives. Packaging recovery program participation. Direct end-of-life emissions calculation complex due to consumer behavior variability and regional infrastructure differences. Focus on recyclability and closed-loop systems.
How do reusable containers compare to single-use for carbon footprint?
Reusable packaging creates trade-off between higher upfront manufacturing and avoided single-use production across multiple cycles. Reusable containers use durable materials with higher initial footprint. However, multiple uses amortize manufacturing emissions over many cycles. Cleaning and transportation between uses add operational emissions. Lifecycle comparison depends on: Number of reuse cycles achieved. Cleaning energy and water consumption. Return logistics distances. Single-use alternative material type. Studies show reusables achieve lower lifecycle emissions than single-use when achieving sufficient return cycles. Report reusable system performance including return rates and lifecycle analysis.
Can packaging manufacturers reduce product carbon intensity?
Several reduction strategies available: Recycled content: Increasing percentage of recycled aluminum, plastic, glass, and fiber in products. Lightweighting: Reducing material per package while maintaining performance and protection. Manufacturing efficiency: Process improvements and renewable energy at facilities lowering Scope 1 and 2. Material innovation: Alternative materials or designs with lower carbon intensity. Reusable systems: Developing return and refill programs where applicable. Track product carbon intensity trends by packaging type. Set reduction targets aligned with customer sustainability goals. Industry moving toward circular packaging economy with high recycled content and material recovery.

Track Packaging Materials, Recycled Content, and Product Carbon Intensity

See how packaging manufacturers monitor material sourcing, calculate container emissions, and generate SASB-aligned disclosures—automated from manufacturing and material data.

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