Main Project: Plastic v. Glass

http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2008/apr/26/waste.pollution
http://www.recap.co.uk/recycling-at-home/materials/glass
http://earth911.com/recycling/glass/brown-glass/
http://brokensecrets.com/2010/03/23/why-beer-bottles-are-green-brown-or-clear/

Although Lea & Perrins wish to retain their iconic bottle shape and colour scheme, they are open to a change in the materials used. Currently they use a clear glass bottle, but is there a more sustainable alternative?

Plastic is widely recycled but not all forms can be reused, and when it is not disposed of correctly and ends up in landfill it can be very damaging to the environment as most forms do not bio-degrade and contain toxins. Bio-plastics exist and are becoming more widely used, which are constructed from wheat, maize and other crops, but there are concerns over whether they are more or less damaging to the environment than regular plastics. They can increase emissions of greenhouse gases on landfill sites and need higher temperatures to decompose, while some can't be recycled in Britain and take up land that is needed to produce food crops.

On the other hand, glass is produced from cheap and abundant raw materials and can be recycled again and again without losing quality. However, a lot of energy is required to create glass from the raw materials of sand, soda ash and limestone, although recycling glass reduces the amount of raw materials mined by 80%. For me, it seems that retaining a glass bottle and encouraging recycling is more environmentally friendly than switching to recycled plastics or bio-plastics. Is there a difference in the recyclability and carbon footprint of different-coloured glasses?

Green glass is more abundant in the UK from imported wine and beer bottles, and UK companies demand more brown and clear glass, but would green glass suit the aesthetic of Lea & Perrins? Clear and brown glass are worth more and would be better attached to the branding of Lea & Perrins; clear glass is already used and brown would blend in well with the orange and black colour scheme and brown sauce colour, although it would be difficult to see how full the sauce bottle is.

The difference between clear and brown glass are the addition of nickel, sulfur and carbon during manufacture to colour it. Carbon dioxide is one of the most damaging gases in our environment and a pollutant, but if the carbon is contained within the glass and the bottle recycled then it could potentially be a more sustainable option. Reading about beer bottles, it was stated that coloured glass protects the ingredients from light which can spoil the contents, although that may not be applicable to this product.