Plastic, born from a synthetic experiment in the early 20th century, has been ubiquitous in every corner of our lives for over a hundred years.

In recent years, with the popularization of environmental protection knowledge, the terms "plastic" and "environmental protection" seem to stand at opposite ends of the scale. Under this trend, the public's use of plastic has sparked widespread reflection and discussion, and people are gradually realizing the potential impact of plastic on the environment. We also need to view plastic more rationally. As a result, people seem to have entered a new stage of understanding plastics.

In order to understand the public's views on plastic and to promote a more rational understanding of plastic, The Paper News released an H5 in March 2024, which combines science popularization and questionnaire research, and collected a total of 1513 valid samples.

What packaging material is environmentally friendly? Are glass and plastic counted?

Starting from the indispensable packaging in daily life, what material is more environmentally friendly? In our survey, 45.7% of respondents believed that paper packaging is more environmentally friendly, while 32.8% believed that specific issues need to be analyzed on a case by case basis.

Most people (73.6%) said that they judge whether packaging is environmentally friendly mainly based on whether there are typical recyclable signs such as triangles, numbers, and the word "back" on the packaging, with relatively less consideration given to packaging materials. This may be due to people's inability to determine from experience which materials are more environmentally friendly and which materials are not.

In McKinsey's study "The Climate Impact of Plastic" on the full lifecycle of different plastic packaging, it is mentioned that HDPE plastic shopping bags emit 80% less greenhouse gases than paper bags throughout their lifecycle, while providing the same functionality.

That is to say, no material is absolutely environmentally friendly, and it needs to be comprehensively considered based on specific application needs, recycling systems, and other aspects.

How does the public view environmentally friendly packaging? We found that the majority of respondents are more supportive of eco-friendly packaging, but are more concerned about cost-effectiveness.

In the survey, 55.5% of people are willing to pay for more environmentally friendly packaging. As for those who are unwilling to spend more money, if the price and quality of environmentally friendly packaging products are consistent with ordinary packaging products, most people (40.3%) will prioritize purchasing.

Further questioning those who are willing to pay, we found that respondents of different ages, educational backgrounds, and cities all indicate that a premium range of less than 5% of the product price is generally acceptable to them. That is to say, most consumers are only willing to pay an extra 5 yuan or lower for eco-friendly packaging when purchasing a 100 yuan bottle of facial cleanser.

It is worth mentioning that in our follow-up, 25 respondents chose '0' when it comes to specific amounts, even though they initially chose 'support'. This also means that the gap between willingness and actual action may be even greater in the real world.

Placing an order is a momentary pleasure, but it cannot be easily disassembled or separated

Nowadays, online shopping is increasingly becoming a part of our lives. In 2023, China's per capita use of express delivery will exceed 90, an increase of 147.25% over 2018. In our survey, respondents received an average of 11 express packages per month.

In the process of online shopping, consumers may receive packages with layers of packaging and countless fillers in addition to the product itself.