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Cardboard boxes are the most common packaging options which are used to store, and ship a variety of products needing exceptional protection to maintain their pristine condition. These are also stylish packaging solutions to enhance the visual appeal of different products. However, these cardboard packaging boxes are becoming more expensive with every passing day.
Some businesses have become 4 times more costly due to different factors, including the lower supply and higher demand of raw materials like cellulose. For instance, the costs have jumped higher to increase the cost of cardboard packaging. Here, we take a closer look at factors influencing higher costs, tips to reduce expenses and alternative options.
What are the Reasons Behind the Higher Costs of Cardboard Packaging Boxes?
There was a sudden increase in the costs of cardboard material by approximately 60%-70% from the start of 2022 due to COVID-19 influence. This pandemic situation has disrupted the supply chain of cardboard packaging solutions.
It is a factor that makes all paper-based packaging options very expensive. Interestingly, the cost of cardboard boxes will be higher by 10%-25% in upcoming years. Let’s consider the following factors affecting the overall cost:
Higher Cost of Raw Material
The price of raw materials such as recyclable paper and wood pulp is going upward due to higher demand, contributing to increased cardboard packaging prices. Moreover, there are different factors, such as higher transit expenses, demand, and scarcity, impacting the overall cost of raw materials. These factors lead to the higher prices of cardboard boxes.
Production Expenses
The production of cardboard boxes involves different phases, like manufacturing, processing, and quality assurance. These steps also combine different factors such as machinery maintenance, energy consumption, and baler wages, adding up to the overall product cost of bespoke cardboard boxes.
Demand & Supply Difference
The demand and supply have an exceptional influence on the cost of cardboard packaging boxes. With the increasing demand for durable cardboard due to the release of seasonal products and the growing e-commerce market, packaging manufacturers face the challenge of a lower supply of raw packaging materials and push prices up, boosting the cardboard packaging expenses.
Environmental Regulations
It is necessary to consider strict environmental regulations when you are looking to meet sustainability goals. These regulations force packaging manufacturers to consider sustainable practices, such as the use of recyclable materials to reduce the carbon footprint. Compliance with these regulations can boost cardboard packaging production costs.
Important Tips for Reducing Costs
When the costs of cardboard boxes increase at regular intervals, it is important to consider the applicable tips and tricks to reduce expenses. Consider the following tips to minimize costs without affecting the packaging quality and customer experience.
Be Specific with Needs Identification
It is important to clarify your specific needs for packaging, such as protection level, strength, size, and shape. You can consider affordable packaging designs and materials to craft high-quality cardboard boxes.
It’s a fantastic approach to reducing the tons of specifications or ordering customized product boxes with additional and unnecessary features, raising the packaging cost.
Prefer Simple and Unique Packaging Design
It is a good approach to consider straightforward and creative design to eliminate the complexity while boosting branding. You must remember that additional features and intricate designs with excessive colors or cuts also contribute to a higher production cost of cardboard packaging boxes.
A clean and simple design allows you to achieve the required impact without the higher costs.
Focus on Specific Customization Options
It is important to consider only essential customizations that offer the ultimate value to your packaging, such as branding elements or logos. You must avoid the over-customization, which doesn’t improve visual appeal and functionality but increases costs.
It is necessary to limit customization based on requirements, reducing the overall expenses of cardboard boxes without compromising the brand’s reputation.
What are the 5 Best Alternatives to Cardboard Boxes?
As brands and customers have become more aware of sustainable alternatives to traditional cardboard boxes, different innovative packaging options have become very popular.
Cornstarch Packaging
This packaging is crafted from a biodegradable material to become a more eco-friendly and versatile option than cardboard. It is a compostable and lightweight packaging to safeguard fragile products. Moreover, this packaging can be broken down within weeks as compared to cardboard apparel boxes to reduce waste.
Corrugated Bubble Wrap
It is a sustainable option that combines the recyclability of corrugated cardboard and cushioning characteristics of traditional bubble wrap. A corrugated bubble wrap is crafted from the recyclable paper offering ideal protection during handling and shipping white being recyclable. Therefore, it has become the ideal packaging option to enhance product protection.
Mushroom Packaging
This packaging solution is manufactured from the agricultural waste and mycelium, becoming a biodegradable alternative to cardboard boxes. It is a compostable packaging that replaces cardboard and foam in different packaging applications. Moreover, mushroom packaging is an affordable option than cardboard boxes.
Molded Pulp Packaging
Mold pulp packaging is engineered from the recyclable paper pulp and ideal for protecting different products ranging from the eggs to appliances. This cost-effective and biodegradable bespoke boxes with logo can be molded into different shapes to meet your specific requirements and is a more eco-friendly option than cardboard.
Seaweed Packaging Custom cardboard boxes
Seaweed-based packaging is an emerging biodegradable and sustainable alternative to cardboard packaging. This packaging contains the seaweed which is a renewable resource to craft the compostable boxes to replace the cardboard and plastic packaging.
Seaweed boxes are sustainable and unique packaging solutions for product packaging and engage eco-conscious customers.
Invest in Affordable and Eco-Friendly Packaging Boxes
Are you looking to buy sustainable packaging boxes at a wholesale rate? Silver Edge Packaging offers cost-effective packaging solutions such as cardboard boxes and tier alternatives while contributing to a sustainable environment. Let’s contact us today to order eco-friendly and custom packaging boxes at an affordable price with free shipping!
