Packaging News
The research surveyed 3,176 hard cheese shoppers across the UK, France, Germany, Italy, Netherlands and Sweden to understand how packaging influences purchasing decisions and what their preferences are for hard cheese packaging.
The European hard cheese market has been growing steadily in recent years, propelled by increasing consumption for both at-home cooking and snacking.
Demand is increasing for cheese packaging to be recycle-ready, driven by consumers, and by the European Commission’s Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation (PPWR) proposal.
Key findings include:
– Transparency is at the forefront of consumer decision-making: 89% of respondents across Europe said that transparent packaging was important to them when buying hard cheese. Consumers want to assess the product’s appearance, size and freshness before making any purchasing decisions.
– Resealable packaging plays a role in customer loyalty: the research found that consumers of hard cheese pay special attention to the sealing of the packaging when picking products from the shelf, with 70% ranking seal integrity as the most important packaging requirement. More than half (53%) also recognised ‘reclosability’ as a key factor – influencing a willingness to repurchase. Resealable packaging was most popular among consumers in France, with 76% highlighting it as important.
– Consumers are ‘on board’ for a more sustainable packaging journey: Around 80% of European consumers say they recycle their hard cheese packaging in compliance with local instructions, with Italy and Germany being particularly high. The research also uncovered that 22% of respondents chose ‘recyclable packaging’as the most meaningful sustainability claim, whilst 16% chose “’ess packaging’ as appealing.
More than third (37%) of respondents said they don’t know how to recycle, while 28% said there is no local recycling stream in their area.
Moreover, a quarter (25%) of respondents think it is too much trouble to separate and clean materials for recycling.
Yi Jiang, marketing director dairy, Amcor EMEA, said: “It is apparent that hard cheese consumers want to recycle more and have a positive perception of paper packaging. Hard cheese brands should take note of this research because it identifies the need to design packaging that is easier to recycle with simple and clear recycling instructions on the pack. There is an opportunity to explore paper options and enhance the quality and sustainability profile of their brand.”
