Liz’s Letters Quantity 1, Factor 1: Boxed Water?

Dear Packaging Enthusiasts,

I’m Liz, the new Associate Editor at Food &
Beverage Packaging magazine. This is my first blog and my chance to write about
packaging from my eyes! I’ve always liked packaging. Though I admit my love
affair with packaging didn’t start with food and beverage products. It started
with Barbie doll packaging, then cosmetics packaging and now its food and
beverage packaging that catches my eye (and still cosmetics, though I stopped
playing with Barbie at around age 12). Packaging is truly powerful stuff. I’m
drawn to it at grocery stores, online, in vending machines, at retail stores
and even at coffee shops!

There’s a wonderful little mom & pop-type coffee
shop near my house that I like to visit to get a soy latte and lately I’ve been
noticing these cartons of water for sale, by Boxed Water Is Better brand. Initially,
I was a little put off by the package (reminds me of milk, in which I am not a
fan), but as I kept seeing them, I started to realize just how innovative a box
of water really is.

Boxed Water Is Better is a water bottle (oops, water
box) company out of Grand Rapids, MI. It started with the idea to create a new bottled water brand
that is kinder to the environment. After brainstorming, the company found that
it shouldn’t be bottled at all, but instead, boxed. The brand released the
boxes of water in 2009 in a white paperboard carton with big black lettering of
the unique company name.

About 76% of
the boxed water container is made from trees, a renewable resource, that when
harvested in a responsible, managed, and ethical way serves as a renewable
resource that benefits the environment even as it’s renewed. Not only is the
container environmentally responsible, the company ships the boxes flat to the
filler, which is significantly more efficient compared to shipping empty
plastic or glass bottles to be filled. The flat, unfilled boxes fit on two
pallets, or roughly 5% of a truckload, compared to the average five truckloads
for empty plastic or glass bottles. The cartons can be broken down to their
original flat state, and are recyclable in some areas. Boxed Water Is Better is
also giving 20% of profits back to the resources the product is composed of –
water and trees.

Today is an
exciting time for packaging. Companies get the chance to do some creative
stuff, some eco-friendly stuff and sometimes a mix of both! I’ll keep my eyes
open for the latest and greatest, as should you. You will be surprised of
what’s out there- who knew, boxed water?  

Until Next
Time!

Sincerely,

Liz Cuneo