Graphics PA - Easter Eggs.qxd - Practical Action

GOOD EGG OR BAD EGG?How can we reduce or eliminate the amount ofwaste in Easter egg packaging?Packaging has an economicpurpose – it aims to make aproduct more attractive than itscompetitors. But can it also senda sustainability message, forexample through Easter eggs?IS EASTER EGG PACKAGING A PROBLEM?• Approx. 80 million chocolate eggs are sold in the UK at Easter• This generates around 4,370 tonnes of card and 160 tonnes offoil waste. (http://www.grownupgreen.org.uk/features/?id=1118)• Oxfam reports that an average 200g chocolate egg comes with54g of card and 2g of foil.• Northamptonshire County Council officers found that in someEaster eggs available in 2007, for every 10g of chocolate youbuy, you also pay for 6g of packaging.• When you buy an Easter egg you can pay more than twice theprice for the same amount of chocolate as in ordinary bars.• In some cases, the box was five times bigger than the chocolate inside(http://www.northamptonshire.gov.uk/News?newsitem=211656)• Although cardboard and foil can be recycled, most Easter egg packaging endsup in landfill, and often the plastic inserts cannot be recycled at all.So, there are at least three issues with Easter egg packaging• They can add a massive amount to landfill every year and some councils arerunning out of landfill space (e.g. Worthing estimated it had only five years ofspace left in 2006)• Packaging often uses up trees that couldbe saved by using recycled pulp – onetonne is the equivalent of 15 trees(http://www.worthing.gov.uk/News/NewsArchive2006/May/Title,33244,en.html)• We are paying over the oddsfor our chocolate!For more information about Practical Action’s resources and their training packages,call us on 01926 634519 or email education@practicalaction.org.ukPractical Action, Schumacher Centre for Technology and Development, Bourton on Dunsmore,Rugby, Warwickshire CV23 9QZ www.practicalaction.org.uk

ACTIVITY 1: Weigh In!Either ask students to bring in examplesof eggs they were given at Easter or get asmall sample yourself, trying to get arange from a lot of packaging to a smallamount (mini eggs often have a very highchocolate-packaging ratio.) Weigh thepackaging and the chocolate and workout the % and amount you pay for each.Alternatively set this as a homework taskand ask students to bring in their results.Discuss the morality of Easter eggchocolate and packaging. Do people want to pay forpackaging? Would people still buy them if the costof the packaging had to be indicated separately?ACTIVITY 2: Stomach Fill or Land Fill!Keep the record of how much packaging andchocolate each egg contained. Give studentsexamples of different packaging. Ask them towork in groups to disassemble the packaging toinvestigate how environmentally sustainable theythink each one is.Ask them to use the following criteria to rate thesustainability of the packaging from 1 to 10, 1being unsustainable, 10 being excellent• Is the packaging made from one or more material?• Are all or some of the materials usedrecyclable, reusable or biodegradable?• Are there any glues or fixings used to hold thepackaging together?• If there is a plastic insert, can you tell if it isrecyclable?• How heavy is thepackaging in relation tothe chocolate?• Is there a recyclingsymbol on the box?• How much emptyspace is there inthe packaging?• Is any of thepackagingunnecessary?• Could the packaging be reused in any way?• How many processes might be needed tomake the box and so use up energy?Then ask each group to place its egg on acontinuum across the room with the leastsustainable at one end and the most at theother. Discuss whether or not their researchwould make any difference to their futureEaster egg choices.ACTIVITY 3: Pack it in...HOW CAN WEENCOURAGESTUDENTS TOTHINK ABOUTPACKAGING?Design and model a sustainable Easter eggpackage. There’s a ready made brief athttp://www.iom3.org/starpack/students/BriefK.pdfSome examples of claims made for sustainableEaster egg packaging can be found athttp://www.sainsburys.co.uk/aboutus/csr07/principle3/packaging/packaging.htm.Interesting research can be found athttp://www.joswinson.org.uk/resources/sites/217.160.173.25-4064151b9ce785.55373887/Excess+Packaging+in+Easter+eggs.docTo give students ideas about different aspects ofsustainable packaging, get them to look athttp://www.informationinspiration.org.uk/ underproduct inspiration, packaging.The Nike shoebox andEcoflex biodegradablepackaging areparticularly useful.MORE IDEAS....Students could do a “What’s the impact?” lifecycle analysis activity on Easter eggs to identifyall the environmental impacts of eggs – formore details of how to buy it go tohttp://www2.cat.org.uk/shopping/product_info.php?cPath=46_64&products_id=1690&osCsid=c60eadb69c87ce9314e09241f98c2606Use a design abacus or an eco-design web toassess the sustainability of two different Easteregg packages http://www.sda-uk.org/toolsa.htmland http://www.sda-uk.org/toolsw.htmlThink about social sustainability by askingstudents to research earlier Easter traditions,e.g. using and decorating hard-boiled eggsFor more information about Practical Action’s resources and their training packages,call us on 01926 634519 or email education@practicalaction.org.ukPractical Action, Schumacher Centre for Technology and Development, Bourton on Dunsmore,Rugby, Warwickshire CV23 9QZ www.practicalaction.org.uk