This combination of reduced materials, pollution, energy and financial costs makes source reduction extremely important in our efforts to control and reduce waste. Thus, many experts believe that source reduction is critical in our efforts to create continued economic vitality while restoring ecological health. When it comes to packaging, the best way to source reduce is to make packages as light as possible. In fact, that's what the packaging industry has been doing for over 20 years. A few good illustrations.
Aluminum cans are a good example.
Glass bottles are another good example. Even plastic soda bottles have seen their weight come down in recent years. Other common packages have also been slimmed down. As packaging gets thinner, it obviously becomes less rigid and more flexible. Besides using far less material, flexible packages are easier to compact, which reduces their volume.