Today, sustainability tops the agenda – for consumers, brands, politicians and manufacturers alike. People see that their own footprint matters, and demand more from businesses, governments and one another in turn. Their expectations are crystal-clear: businesses should be doing more to help them make more sustainable choices. Glass is recyclable and protects the integrity of the product inside. In the International Year of Glass, we want to remind the world what they already love about glass. That’s why we’ve created the Glass Hallmark.
Glass is simple, made from materials found in nature. It is also infinitely recyclable, with endless lives. The same glass material can be indefinitely reused without any loss of quality, in an endless loop, and recycled again and again into new bottles and jars. This reduces waste, cuts CO₂ emissions and saves raw material.
Small actions make a difference. By choosing to buy and recycle glass, everyone can play their part in protecting the health of our planet. People can actively contribute to reduce packaging waste, save raw materials, and help achieve a 100% collection rate across Europe by recycling their glass items wherever possible.
Glass is a sustainably sound packaging material. Because of its inherent properties, glass acts as a safe barrier to external agents, meaning products are safely preserved for longer in glass, even once opened. This makes glass the natural choice for preserving not only the quality of the product, but the health of the people who use it.
The more sustainable future we strive for will be built step by step and choice by choice, in moments big and small. Every time we choose glass, we are choosing that future, and promising to do our part to make that future real. It’s a promise to protect health – of individuals, of the planet, of society.
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We all strive for a better tomorrow – a world where the planet and people are healthier and happier than they are today. In the face of global warming, public health crises and economic turbulence, that future has never felt more uncertain. But people are demanding more from businesses, governments and one another to ensure we foster a more sustainable world for the next generation.
In such turbulent times, it’s reassuring to know that for product protection, one aspect of our future is clear: glass packaging. The timelessness of glass means the packaging people have loved most, yesterday and today, is the very best option for tomorrow.
Glass is the packaging of choice for safeguarding our planet.
Made entirely of raw materials found in nature, glass is simple and does no significant harm to the environment. It’s the only packaging that’s both reusable and infinitely recyclable, with endless lives: glass can be recycled again and again, in an endless loop, into new bottles and jars. This reduces waste, cuts CO2 emissions and saves raw materials. And the industry is working to make glass production even more sustainable and climate neutral by designing more efficient “Furnaces for the Future,” built on renewable energy and hybrid technologies to reduce carbon emissions significantly.
Glass is a trusted and proven choice for those seeking wellness.
As an everyday packaging material, it is natural, sustainable and safe – crucial at a time when the health credentials of packaging are becoming even more important to people. Because of its inherent inertness and protective properties, glass acts as a safe barrier to external agents, meaning products are preserved for longer in glass, even once opened. This makes glass the natural choice for preserving not only the quality of the product, but the health of the people who use it. The industry is partnering with customers to introduce the Glass Hallmark onto packaging, serving, in part, to symbolise the commitment made to health and quality when choosing glass.
Glass is a key resource for achieving a thriving, circular European society.
Reusable and endlessly recyclable, glass packaging is a role model for circularity. It can be taken back to the store and directly refilled, or recycled again and again without loss of quality. And the industry – a longtime leader in circularity – is convening stakeholders across the entire glass value chain to ‘Close the Glass Loop’ and drive a 90% collection rate of glass by 2030 to make our circular economy work better.
The industry also remains committed to building on its longstanding cultural heritage to drive sustainable growth for the continent. European glassmaking is adapting and innovating to secure the future of the industry – the jobs that come with it and essential sectors that depend on it – and ensure glass is fit for the circular and climate-neutral economy Europe’s 2050 sustainability targets will bring.
We can’t forecast the future. It will be built step-by-step and choice-by-choice, in moments large and small. But when it comes to packaging, the future is made clear. Our future is glass: the preferred material for sustainable, healthy, reusable and infinitely recyclable closed loop packaging. Choosing glass is choosing a better future – and promising to do our part to make that future real. It’s a promise to protect health – of the planet, of people, of society – so that we thrive together for generations to come.
Glass. Choose tomorrow, today.
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Glass has been a touchpoint of celebration, commerce, culture and science for over two thousand years – now, 2022 is being marked as the ‘International Year of Glass’, with hundreds of events taking place around the world to celebrate the unique characteristics of glass in all its forms.
Read moreAs we all strive for a more sustainable future, people all over Europe are taking more steps to reduce their environmental footprint and becoming more vocal in their expectations that businesses do more to help them make more sustainable choices. But how to combine the quality and uniqueness of a handcrafted local product with increasing needs for more sustainable options? One option is adopting the new glass hallmark on bottles and jars, as Venetian brewer 32 Via dei Birrai has.
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