The Foundation Algorithm
“The Foundation Algorithm” is the title of the Report drawn up by the Commission on Sustainability Istituto Italiano Imballaggio which provides the Foundation with a valuable scientific tool to accomplish one of its primary goals: promote an ethical and sustainable business culture for the packaging industry.
The idea to set up a Commission on Sustainability was born on the desire of Anna Paola Cavanna, President of the Italian Packaging Institute – a project extensively shared and supported by the Board of Directors of the Institute. The Commission met for the first time in 2009. Originally, the members of the Board of Directors were part of it.
In September of the same year, the commission decided to expand the participation in the Commission works also to all the companies affiliated to the Italian Packaging Institute. The response of the members by far exceeds the expectations with more than 100 experts of the sector that pool their highly qualified expertise in drafting the Report.
“The Foundation Algorithm” is the title of the Report drawn up by the Commission on Sustainability Istituto Italiano Imballaggio which provides the Foundation with a valuable scientific tool to accomplish one of its primary goals: promote an ethical and sustainable business culture for the packaging industry.
The idea to set up a Commission on Sustainability was born on the desire of Anna Paola Cavanna, President of the Italian Packaging Institute – a project extensively shared and supported by the Board of Directors of the Institute. The Commission met for the first time in 2009. Originally, the members of the Board of Directors were part of it.
In September of the same year, the commission decided to expand the participation in the Commission works also to all the companies affiliated to the Italian Packaging Institute. The response of the members by far exceeds the expectations with more than 100 experts of the sector that pool their highly qualified expertise in drafting the Report.
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Since January 2020, five working groups have been meeting on a regular basis every 45 days with the aim to draw up the ground rules relating to five thematic chapters:
1. Glossary Definition
2. Legislative and normative framework
3. Calculation algorithm for environmental sustainability
4. Environmental claims and labelling
5. UN SDGs (Sustainable Development Goals)
One of the ambitious projects of this task force is the creation of an innovative algorithm to calculate packaging sustainability by starting from the 10 points of the Ethical Packaging Charter and associating them with the 17 goals of the UN 2030 Agenda.
Thanks to this algorithm, companies can “measure” the positioning of their products in terms of environmental sustainability. The first draft of the Report is currently being worked on.
Let us remember point 10. Sustainable of the Ethical Packaging Charter: “Packaging is sustainable if designed in a holistic way, fully balanced with the product and its use, such as to lift the overall environmental performances”.
Since January 2020, five working groups have been meeting on a regular basis every 45 days with the aim to draw up the ground rules relating to five thematic chapters:
1. Glossary Definition
2. Legislative and normative framework
3. Calculation algorithm for environmental sustainability
4. Environmental claims and labelling
5. UN SDGs (Sustainable Development Goals)
One of the ambitious projects of this task force is the creation of an innovative algorithm to calculate packaging sustainability by starting from the 10 points of the Ethical Packaging Charter and associating them with the 17 goals of the UN 2030 Agenda.
Thanks to this algorithm, companies can “measure” the positioning of their products in terms of environmental sustainability. The first draft of the Report is currently being worked on.
Let us remember point 10. Sustainable of the Ethical Packaging Charter: “Packaging is sustainable if designed in a holistic way, fully balanced with the product and its use, such as to lift the overall environmental performances”.
The “The Foundation Algorithm” report
in a nutshell:
[ Work start: January 2020
[ Member: more than 100 packaging professionals
[ Organization: 5 working groups
[ Schedule: meets every 45 days
[ Contents:
1. Glossary Definition,
2. Legislative and normative framework,
3. Calculation algorithm for environmental sustainability,
4. Environmental claims and labelling,
5. UN SDGs (Sustainable Development Goals)
[ Goal: provide ground rules and tools to measure environmental sustainability for the packaging industry
[ News: sustainability algorithm
[ Publication: May 2022
The “The Foundation Algorithm” report
in a nutshell:
[ Work start: January 2020
[ Member: more than 100 packaging professionals
[ Organization: 5 working groups
[ Schedule: meets every 45 days
[ Contents:
1. Glossary Definition,
2. Legislative and normative framework,
3. Calculation algorithm for environmental sustainability,
4. Environmental claims and labelling,
5. UN SDGs (Sustainable Development Goals)
[ Goal: provide ground rules and tools to measure environmental sustainability for the packaging industry
[ News: sustainability algorithm
[ Publication: May 2022
Sustainability, Value 10 of the Charter, is now an essential factor not only in products, but also in the behavior of a company. It touches on every aspect, from environmental impacts to economic and social ones.
The “zero impact” target set for 2050 by the European Commission, in line with the indications of the United Nations 2030 Agenda, finds practical application in the indications of the EU Next Generation plan and related investments, over a third of which are bound to sustainable choices.
In order to practice sustainability it is essential to measure it, to know how sustainable a company and its products are. Packaging is a key element in which to implement its values: every product – be it a food, a drug, any object – on the market is wrapped in a wrapper or protected by a packaging that still has an impact on the environment.
Starting from the Values expressed in the Charter, in order to meet this need, the Sustainability Commission of the Ethical Charter Foundation for Packaging, has developed specific Guidelines, at the center of which is the Algorithm.
This is the operational tool that allows you to frame and parameterize performance to improve the sustainability of a packaging. Through an online procedure, the Algorithm provides a parameterized positioning on the equivalent CO2 emitted, a score (or rating) thanks to which it will be possible to evaluate your packaging.
This is a first approach analysis, easily applicable, which does not overlap or replace the more complex and codified LCA (Life Cycle Assessment) analysis.
The positioning with respect to sustainability is obtained through the input of a series of qualitative and quantitative information concerning the different phases of production, use and end of life of the product / packaging, with reference to the direct and indirect elements of the production cycle: from raw materials , logistics and storage included, up to the production of the finished object.
At the end of the procedure, together with the positioning, the algorithm will indicate the points on which to intervene to achieve an improvement in the rating.
