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Amazon’s Major Plastic Packaging Reduction in North America
June 24, 2024
Amazon has announced its most significant initiative yet to reduce plastic packaging across its operations in North America, marking a substantial step toward sustainability in e-commerce. The company has replaced 95% of plastic air pillows used in delivery packaging with paper fillers, with plans to eliminate them entirely by the end of this year.
This ambitious move is expected to eliminate nearly 15 billion plastic air pillows annually from Amazon’s fulfillment centers in North America, making it the largest plastic packaging reduction effort by the company in this region to date. For upcoming events like Prime Day, Amazon aims to have almost all customer deliveries free of plastic air pillows, reflecting its commitment to sustainability in high-volume operations.
Amazon’s decision to prioritize paper fillers was validated through assessments by third-party engineering labs, confirming that paper provides equivalent or superior protection to products compared to plastic air pillows. Moreover, paper fillers are curbside recyclable, aligning with Amazon’s broader strategy to increase the recyclability of its packaging materials.
Christian Garcia, a fulfillment associate at Amazon’s BFL1 center in Bakersfield, California, expressed enthusiasm for the shift to paper fillers, citing improved workspace and pride in contributing to more sustainable practices. This sentiment underscores Amazon’s employee-centric approach to sustainability initiatives.
The transition from plastic to paper fillers has been facilitated by extensive collaboration with suppliers to source materials made from 100% recycled content. This shift not only reduces Amazon’s plastic footprint but also streamlines packaging processes across hundreds of fulfillment centers. Employees have been crucial in this transition, receiving training on new systems and machinery to support the switch to paper fillers.
Pat Lindner, Amazon’s VP of mechatronics and sustainable packaging, emphasized the collaborative effort across Amazon to enhance the customer experience while prioritizing recyclable materials. “It’s a great example of how we thoughtfully test and scale new solutions to protect our customer experience,” Lindner stated. “We are working towards full removal in North America by end of year and will continue to innovate, test, and scale in order to prioritize curbside recyclable materials.”
Beyond packaging, Amazon continues to invest in innovative solutions such as partnerships with the U.S. Department of Energy and collaborations with AI and robotics companies like Glacier. These initiatives aim to introduce new materials and technologies for recycling, enhancing efficiency, and reducing environmental impact across its operations.
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