One of the greatest company challenges is creating and effectively communicating a narrative that inspires trust and demonstrates authenticity.

“Storied plastics,” or plastics that are collected by waste stream, sorted by material type, and traced back to the original point of origin, are a good choice of material for use in packaging as companies attempt to improve their sustainability practices, writes Pierre-Francois Thaler, co-founder and co-CEO of EcoVadis (via FoodDive). Companies that know they need to expand their eco-friendly practices are looking for ways to either limit packaging or to make packaging more sustainable, but that can “leave a hole in the product development process,” Thaler writes. Instead of filling this hole with generic recycled materials, consider storied plastics, he suggests. Storied plastics provide an opportunity for a brand to differentiate itself by giving a product color and background via the story of where its material originated. “The traceable, ‘origin story’ component of material comprised of products and packaging people have interacted with in their own lives can be communicated clearly and effectively to today’s highly discerning consumer,” wrote Tom Szaky, founder and CEO of TerraCycle, in Huffington Post last spring.

“Storied plastics,” or plastics that are collected by waste stream, sorted by material type, and traced back to the original point of origin, are a good choice of material for use in packaging as companies attempt to improve their sustainability practices, writes Pierre-Francois Thaler, co-founder and co-CEO of EcoVadis (via FoodDive). Companies that know they need to expand their eco-friendly practices are looking for ways to either limit packaging or to make packaging more sustainable, but that can “leave a hole in the product development process,” Thaler writes. Instead of filling this hole with generic recycled materials, consider storied plastics, he suggests. Storied plastics provide an opportunity for a brand to differentiate itself by giving a product color and background via the story of where its material originated. “The traceable, ‘origin story’ component of material comprised of products and packaging people have interacted with in their own lives can be communicated clearly and effectively to today’s highly discerning consumer,” wrote Tom Szaky, founder and CEO of TerraCycle, in Huffington Post last spring.

One of the most important factors consumers cite in their selection of eco-friendly products is the use of recycled content, and consumer packaged goods (CPG) companies are meeting their requests. Driven by increasing demand for products from companies committed to making positive social and environmental impacts, more and more manufacturers have publicly stated goals and have made commitments to increase the amount of post-consumer recycled (PCR) resins in their product packaging. CPG companies currently tend to fill this need with generic recycled materials (i.e. “rPET” or “rHDPE”). Sourced from recycled material suppliers selling resins aggregated from one or many municipal recycling facilities, generic recycled materials contain plastic from many different types of products and packaging, come from any number of places and have no traceability back to the original product or where the material was generated or collected.

If branding is all about telling a story, generic post-consumer recycled content may be lacking in that department. Sourced from recycled material suppliers selling resins aggregated from one or many municipal recycling facilities, generic recycled materials (that is “rPET” or “rHDPE”) contain plastic from many different types of products and packaging, come from any number of places and have no traceability back to the original product or where the material was generated or collected. Identifying the key values that drive significance with customers and consumers is a huge factor in crafting a narrative. Many companies branding for sustainability have publicly stated goals and have made commitments to increase the amount of post-consumer recycled (PCR) resins in their product packaging. This is because one of the most important factors consumers cite in their selection of eco-friendly products is the use of recycled content.