Consumers are wise to the plastic recycling boondoggle. In recent years, they’ve seen an onslaught of news exposing how plastic recycling is a waste of time, a lie, practically impossible, and an outright failure because most plastic never gets recycled. Instead, all that plastic ends up in landfills, in ocean garbage patches, and in people.
The failure of plastic recycling, however, hasn’t dampened consumers’ desire to help the environment. Our Lux anthropological research repeatedly shows that consumers want to create a new moral standard for their consumption habits by finding sustainable alternatives to the plastic packaging they once believed could be recycled. They don’t want to stop consuming, but they do want to stop consuming irresponsibly.
Anthropological Consumer Insights: It’s about way more than just buying stuff
Applying anthropological methods to the study of consumer culture reveals how people’s beliefs, identities, values, and desires inform their buying habits. Our powerful virtual anthropologist helps us unpack consumer cultures by collecting vast quantities of online chatter, which our Ph.D. anthropologists then examine to reveal the hidden meaning behind why consumers buy certain products (and product packaging).
Case study: Glass packaging
Before plastic became the dominant packaging material for CPG, glass packaging was far more common on American store shelves. Based on our recent research on consumers’ perceptions of glass packaging today, it looks like glass could be ready for a renaissance in consumer culture as a sustainable packaging alternative to plastic. But why glass, exactly? The reason may be because consumers imbue glass with a multitude of meanings that make it attractive not only for its sustainability bona fides but also for the ways it scratches Americans’ various cultural itches.
Green packaging
First, let’s talk about sustainability. Consumers think glass packaging embodies ecofriendly ideals, with emphasis on the natural part. They know that glass occurs naturally in nature (volcanic glass, tektites, etc.) and is manufactured from natural materials (sand, soda ash, limestone), which are less harmful to the environment than the petroleum used to make plastic. Consumers also appreciate that glass (unlike plastic) is infinitely recyclable and is even a “green” form of trash because (also unlike plastic) it doesn’t leach toxic chemicals into landfills.
Aesthetic appeal
Beyond sustainability, consumers believe glass packaging conveys quality and aesthetic appeal — especially when compared to the “cheap” aesthetic they associate with plastic. To consumers, glass embodies premium brands (e.g., Hibiki Japanese Harmony Whiskey in a 24-sided glass bottle, with each facet representing the hours of the day). They also appreciate the repurposing of glass (like using Crystal Head Vodka’s skull bottle as gothic home decor) and the irreplaceably comforting tactile feel of running their fingers along frosted glass (like on a bottle of Topo Chico fizzy water).
So much nostalgia
Across age groups, consumers think glass packaging evokes nostalgia for slower and simpler times, providing a welcome mental reprieve from the hectic modern world. Whether it’s Boomers enjoying glass Coca-Cola bottles to relive the soda fountain era, Gen Xers and Millennials taking to TikTok to reminisce about how glass bottles of Gatorade and Snapple “hit different” (compared to plastic) back in the ‘80s and ‘90s, or even Gen Zers enjoying the slow pour of a glass Heinz ketchup bottle to experience a time when people had time to spare, consumers find clear-eyed nostalgia in the clear finish of glass.
Clear freshness
Finally, glass food packaging evokes purity, visibility, and freshness in consumers’ eyes. They believe food in glass containers such as mason jars stays fresher than it does in plastic packaging because they associate glass with airtight preservation. Moreover, consumers enjoy seeing a food’s freshness through the unblemished transparency of a glass container, especially when it comes to pantry staples like cereal, rice, spices, and pasta.
Of course, consumers are also aware of the downsides that come with glass packaging: Glass is fragile and prone to breakage, and its production entails high energy costs (via emissions-heavy shipping and land-deteriorating mining for silica sand to make virgin glass). But compared to the borderline apocalyptic problems they now associate with a world deluged in plastic waste, consumers think its pros still outweigh its cons, to say nothing of the cons they associate with plastic packaging.
The takeaway
When considering how to offer more sustainable packaging at scale, CPG brands would do well to keep an eye on both the past and the future. Glass may be old technology, but it can help build a new, less plastic-clogged future. Lux analyst Matilde della Fontana has reported how major brands are looking to reduce the amount of plastic in their packaging by 30%–40% by 2030, making way for advanced technology in paper and molded pulp packaging. But while paper-based packaging is a functional and sustainable alternative to excess plastic, it won’t be the only alternative, and it doesn’t have the same cultural/emotional appeal that glass offers to consumers. Taking advantage of Lux’s anthropologically informed research can help CPG brands tap into that cultural/emotional appeal, so they can reap profits and save the earth in the process.
Want to learn more about the future of sustainable consumer trends?
Read 5 Key Consumer Trends Shaping 2025, where we explore key insights like these and more, helping you stay ahead of evolving consumer demands.
