The project set out to find a substitute for the plastic film. The diagnosis revealed that the best opportunity for improvement might lie in another component of the packaging.
Sometimes, the first step towards a better solution is discovering that we were looking in the wrong place.
The challenge
From replacing a plastic film to discovering where the greatest room for environmental improvement lay.
Creacció launched this project to promote ecodesign among poultry producers in Lluçanès and Osona. The initial request seemed simple: find an alternative to the plastic film used to package organic chicken. But any replacement had to ensure food safety, product preservation and compatibility with production processes.
The diagnosis raised a prior question: was the film really the component with the most room for improvement? The trays in use were made of expanded polystyrene (EPS) and marketed as biodegradable, a property that does not guarantee a lower environmental impact. While replacing the film faced technical limitations, the trays offered more alternatives. The packaging therefore had to be analysed as a whole before deciding where to interven.
Methodology
From perceptions about materials to decisions grounded in data and technical criteria.
At Spora, we approach ecodesign from a systemic perspective, analysing materials in relation to the product, the processes and end-of-life management. In this case, the research was refocused on the trays through four phases:
Opportunity diagnosis. Identifying the limitations of the film and the improvement potential of the trays.
Assessment of alternatives. Applying Spora’s own multi-criteria assessment system, based on five variables: recyclability or recovery, compostability and biodegradability, origin of the raw material, functional resistance and mechanical resistance.
Identification of commercial solutions. Selecting materials and suppliers with real potential for application.
Pilot test design. A technical validation proposal ahead of assessing economic feasibility and possible implementation.
Results
Concrete alternatives and new circularity opportunities beyond the packaging.
The multi-criteria assessment confirmed the circularity limitations of the EPS trays and made it possible to compare four alternatives:
Plant fibres with compostable coating: 0.875 / 1
Recycled PET tray: 0.600 / 1
Recycled cardboard with separable protective film: 0.575 / 1
Expanded polystyrene (EPS), initial material: 0.100 / 1
Plant fibres with a compostable coating received the highest rating. The project identified commercial solutions and suppliers, and defined a pilot proposal. The supply chain analysis also revealed an additional opportunity: reusing distribution boxes by taking advantage of potentially closed-loop logistics circuits.
Lessons learned
In ecodesign, knowing where to intervene is as important as finding a better alternative.
The project leaves three lessons that apply beyond the poultry sector:
1- A material is not sustainable because of a single property. Biodegradable, compostable or recyclable do not, on their own, guarantee a lower environmental impact. The whole life cycle must be taken into account.
2- Questioning the initial problem can reveal more relevant opportunities. Focusing on the film would have overlooked the improvement potential of the trays and the reuse possibilities in distribution.
3- A good environmental alternative must also be viable. Food safety, technical performance and costs shape any change and require solutions to be validated before they are implemented.
The project set out to find an alternative to the film. It ended up identifying other materials, new reuse possibilities and a more precise way of tackling the problem.