Results To Air Exclusively at Global Pouch Forum
Calling '60 Minutes'? Marketing Exec Takes To the Aisles To Record Consumer Insights On Pouch Sustainability Attributes

There is a disconnect between what consumers understand about sustainability and any connection to packaging and that what pouch suppliers and brand-owners mistakenly think they know, and a well-known marketing communications executive intends to explore how deep that divide actually is.

Craig Ostbo, principal of Portland, OR-based Koopman Ostbo, believes consumers have a wide misunderstanding – or even lack of understanding -- of what sustainability is and, even more so, don’t understand the concept of source-reduction – the one attribute suppliers of pouch materials and pouches are hitting on most in context to the sustainable packaging movement.

Ostbo will test that theory by using his own guerrilla tactics to get to the heart of the issue: he will go out armed with a video camera to supermarkets and natural and organics food stores to talk to consumers about their perceptions of pouches and their understanding of sustainability. The video results of that survey, featuring live interviews with consumers in the Portland area, will be presented during Ostbo’s May 8 presentation at the 2008 Global Pouch Forum.

The Global Pouch Forum, the largest in North America focusing strictly on bag, pouch, and flexible packaging technologies and markets, will be held May 7 to 9 in Oak Brook, IL. Attendance is already building well above the event’s 10-year historical average. Click here to register.

Ostbo believes he will find that consumers understand certain aspects of sustainability but not the pertinent (or relevant) details to make a wise purchasing decision. He cites recent survey results that show consumers preferring pouches as delivery vehicles for their cereal but choosing cartons due to their perceptions that a carton is a more recyable -- and hence sustainable -- packaging format. One supplier at a recent naturals and organics conference even told Ostbo that consumers perceive that “if it’s in a box, it’s cereal, and if it’s in a pouch, it’s granola.”

Ostbo, who works regularly with consumer packaged goods (CPG) companies on marketing communications campaigns, said when most consumers say sustainable, they mean recyclable. And, generally, the belief is that pouches do not fit that need and cannot be recycled or reused, he said.

Of wider concern is Ostbo’s belief that consumers are becoming aware exponentially of the environmental aspects of packages but that pouch producers are not doing a good enough job of getting their message across. For instance, with Wal-Mart’s changeover in its stores to concentrated laundry detergent, many consumers believe sustainability is equated solely with smaller packages rather a reduction in and a wiser use of packaging materials – two very different things.

Ostbo’s video reportage hopes to uncover some areas where perceptions and reality diverge at the point of sale.

He advocates a stronger marketing communication campaign by packaging producers to educate consumers on the environmental benefits of packaging. Use of Internet tools or even Web blogs could be a key step, as consumers are becoming more attuned to using those online devices to gather information before a shopping trip.

“Taking time to educate consumers is one of the first steps of sustainability,” he emphasized. “If not, consumers will wake up one day and demand things, while the pouch industry will be behind the eight ball."