Packaging a problem in season for gifts
Source: Xinhua |
February 9, 2013, Saturday
|
Print Edition
Print Edition
AS China's gift market enjoys a boom prior to the Spring Festival, the problem of overpackaging still lingers despite an ongoing campaign to promote frugality in the country.
A survey in a gift shop conducted this week by the People's Daily found that the packaging of a luxury tea, priced at about 10,000 yuan (US$1,590), weighed 2.5 kilograms. However, the tea weighed only about 100 grams.
Although lavish packaging has long been criticized, it has provoked more opposition this year due to a campaign to avoid extravagance and waste.
China Central Television also joined in the movement, calling on the public not to buy heavily wrapped goods.
It is estimated that overpackaging costs the country about 400 billion yuan every year.
In 2010, a national standard to regulate excessive packaging in the food and cosmetics sectors was launched but the problem in the gift market is still rampant.
"I bought a set of swaddling clothes for my children. It was put in a huge box and dozens of pins were used to fix the clothes in the case. Overpackaging is not only wasteful but also dangerous," said a microblogger on weibo.com.
Dong Jinshi, vice president of the International Foodpackaging Association, said unnecessary packaging was also environmentally hazardous as it wastes resources and also causes problems in recycling.
He said flashy packages were often made from inferior materials that don't easily decompose.
Products wrapped in fancy packages are often more attractive, thus more lucrative, said Tan Kejian, a sociologist from the Shanxi Academy of Social Sciences.
People are also more inclined to buy such goods for gifts, as they believe decent packaging will make the products more presentable, Tan said.
"If the gift is very exquisite or holds high value, then both the sender and receiver feel honored." Dong said.
The survey quoted a shop assistant at a store's alcohol section saying that the flashier the package, the better the alcohol sells.
This month, Shanghai launched a local regulation to reduce unneeded packaging, with violators facing fines of up to 50,000 yuan.
A survey in a gift shop conducted this week by the People's Daily found that the packaging of a luxury tea, priced at about 10,000 yuan (US$1,590), weighed 2.5 kilograms. However, the tea weighed only about 100 grams.
Although lavish packaging has long been criticized, it has provoked more opposition this year due to a campaign to avoid extravagance and waste.
China Central Television also joined in the movement, calling on the public not to buy heavily wrapped goods.
It is estimated that overpackaging costs the country about 400 billion yuan every year.
In 2010, a national standard to regulate excessive packaging in the food and cosmetics sectors was launched but the problem in the gift market is still rampant.
"I bought a set of swaddling clothes for my children. It was put in a huge box and dozens of pins were used to fix the clothes in the case. Overpackaging is not only wasteful but also dangerous," said a microblogger on weibo.com.
Dong Jinshi, vice president of the International Foodpackaging Association, said unnecessary packaging was also environmentally hazardous as it wastes resources and also causes problems in recycling.
He said flashy packages were often made from inferior materials that don't easily decompose.
Products wrapped in fancy packages are often more attractive, thus more lucrative, said Tan Kejian, a sociologist from the Shanxi Academy of Social Sciences.
People are also more inclined to buy such goods for gifts, as they believe decent packaging will make the products more presentable, Tan said.
"If the gift is very exquisite or holds high value, then both the sender and receiver feel honored." Dong said.
The survey quoted a shop assistant at a store's alcohol section saying that the flashier the package, the better the alcohol sells.
This month, Shanghai launched a local regulation to reduce unneeded packaging, with violators facing fines of up to 50,000 yuan.
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