Essentra Tapes unveils new consumer research about packaging frustrations and delights

How attitudes to packaging and its functionality have changed over the past seven years, based on a detailed survey of 1,000 UK consumers, is the subject of a new White Paper from leading packaging tapes provider Essentra Tapes.

The full results were first revealed at a recent ThePackHub webinar, where Essentra Tape’s head of marketing & development, Ian Beresford, unveiled consumers’ latest opinions and compared them to previous research in 2013.

While the survey showed a 15% decrease in consumer packaging frustrations during this time, at 70% the figure remained high, with difficulty in opening packs still a major gripe among respondents. However, environmental concerns and the huge growth of e-commerce have had a significant influence on consumer opinions, and overpackaging is now seen as the number one frustration.

Not surprisingly, the Covid-19 pandemic has also had an impact, with the hygienic benefits of packaging becoming more important.
Age was still a key factor, and the research confirmed that ease of access continued to be a particular problem for the over 55s. Access was also the deciding factor behind consumers’ most and least favourite pack styles. The three most frustrating packs all lacked opening devices with the hard plastic clamshell retaining its top spot from 2013, while juice cartons with screw caps and cans with ring pulls were the number one and two most pleasing packs.

In addition, consumers highlighted the importance of sustainability within packaging and ranked recyclability as their number one issue. Packs that are easy to recycle are what consumers care about and providing simple, clear instructions and the necessary infrastructure to help with this is key. It also appears that consumers are starting to expect packs to be designed to be more sustainable, with only a third saying they would be prepared to pay more for sustainable packaging.
“Our latest research shows that the image of packaging among consumers has improved somewhat since 2013 but there is clearly still work to do,” commented Beresford.

Key findings from the survey included:
• Too much packaging is now the number one frustration with 58% of consumers highlighting this issue, an increase from 49% in 2013.
• 57% of those surveyed cited ‘Difficult to open’ as their top frustration and 48% said that they had to use knives or other tools to get into packs. This compares to 61% and 69% in 2013.
• 56% of respondents said there was too much packaging in home delivered goods and 40% highlighted the amount of waste this generates.
• Over 50% of consumers are very or extremely concerned about the hygiene of goods in supermarkets and takeaway food deliveries as a result of the pandemic.

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