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Packaging is everywhere — and so are questions about its impact.
The good news: you don’t need a 6-month study to build a simple, transparent Packaging LCA that delivers real insight. With accessible sustainability software and AI assistance, even small teams can model packaging footprints quickly and reuse the workflow across product lines.

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This guide shows you how to go from zero to impact results — in just one week.

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What You’ll Need

  • Basic bill of materials (weight, material type, supplier)
  • Transport distances (to warehouse or customer)
  • Use-phase assumptions (for reusable packaging)
  • End-of-life scenarios (landfill, incineration, recycling)
Collect only the data you actually need. Data-driven sustainability doesn’t require perfect completeness — start with the big drivers and refine later.

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Step-by-Step Timeline

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📅 Day 1: Define Your Functional Unit

A clear functional unit keeps everything comparable. 📌 Example: “Protecting 1 liter of liquid during transport over 300 km.”

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📅 Day 2: Map the System

Break packaging into layers:
  • Primary packaging (e.g., PET bottle)
  • Secondary packaging (e.g., cardboard tray)
  • Tertiary packaging (e.g., pallet wrap)
A simple flowchart is enough — clarity beats complexity.

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📅 Day 3: Collect Data

Start light:
  • Material weights from specs
  • Recycled content (%)
  • Supplier locations and transport mode
  • End-of-life assumptions (EU averages are fine if exact data is missing)
Centralizing sustainability data early makes future LCAs dramatically faster.

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📅 Day 4: Build the Model

Use tools designed to make life cycle assessment made easy:
  • Sustainly — transparent AI sustainability tools ideal for fast, repeatable packaging LCAs
  • One Click LCA
  • Ecochain Mobius
With Sustainly’s AI copilot, teams can automate repetitive tasks, keep data structured, and scale workflows across packaging variants without rebuilding models from scratch.
💡 Tip: Focus on creating a scalable sustainability workflow you can reuse for multiple SKUs, not just a one-off study.

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📅 Day 5: Interpret Results

Look for the biggest hotspots:
  • Primary materials (often the biggest driver)
  • Transport contribution
  • End-of-life trade-offs
Run 1–2 improvement scenarios, such as:
  • PET vs. rPET
  • Stretch film vs. reusable crate
  • Local vs. global supplier
These comparisons help teams make data-driven sustainability decisions quickly.

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Final Output (for Stakeholders)

Produce a concise summary that’s easy for non-experts to understand:
  • One-pager overview: CO₂e, water use, recyclability
  • Bar chart or Sankey showing impact distribution
  • Clear list of trade-offs (e.g., “heavier but more recyclable”)
  • Transparent notes on assumptions & boundaries

Keep It Clear

Summaries should tell the story at a glance.

Keep It Useful

Ensure results support real packaging decisions.

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Packaging Questions You Can Now Answer

❓ Is paper always better than plastic?
❓ When does reusable packaging pay off?
❓ How much does transport actually matter?
❓ Should we switch to mono-material packaging? These are the kinds of decisions that become much easier with simple LCA tools for businesses and centralized sustainability data guiding the process.

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Final Takeaway

A clear, focused packaging LCA can be built quickly — and reused across SKUs with minimal effort. The key is a structured workflow, good assumptions, and tools that remove friction. Sustainly helps teams scale packaging LCAs through transparent AI, collaborative workspaces, and reusable templates — making data-driven sustainability accessible to both beginners and experts. Start small. Stay consistent. Build sustainable business value across your entire packaging portfolio.