Generation Z to Lead the Future for Clean Packaging

For Gen Z, where a product comes from and how it is made is as important as its price and quality. This extends to the packaging of products, and clean packaging is the rage with this generation.

Fremont, CA: 2020 has been earmarked as the start of a new digital age. The working population demographics have also changed significantly over the last decade. Millennials now dominate the working population and will soon be accompanied by Generation Z. The future is in the hands of Generation Z (Gen Z), which have had internet connectivity at their fingertips their whole lives, making them the world's first digitally native generation. This has had a profound impact on how they perceive and see things. As this generation comes of age, we can expect significant changes in how business is conducted. For instance, the concepts from industrial revolutions to maximize products will become invalid, with the focus now being on delivering personalized customer-centric products that are suited to the taste of each customer.

Without a doubt, the upcoming generation is likely to be more aware of their surroundings and access more information. They will be highly aware of a whole range of issues that may not even come across as an issue to the previous generations. For Gen Z, where a product comes from and how it is made is as important as its price and quality. This extends to the packaging of products, and clean packaging is the rage with this generation. Brands need to look into packaging options that reflect a brand's social and environmental consciousness to tap into this upcoming segment.

Clean packaging is often misunderstood as a packaging design that is clean and has minimal content. Instead, it has more to do with what goes into the packaging than what appears on the outside. It is a question of what the packaging represents in terms of transparency and authenticity. Environmental awareness has been a growing concern for many years now, and this is expected to gain maximum momentum in the coming years. Gen Z understands the need for a cleaner environment to ensure the survival of the species. A clean label promotes a minimal number of ingredients, which list these ingredients in a simple, transparent manner. It applies the clean label concept to product packaging. Many products on the market use packaging that's derived from unsustainable sources, harming the environment.

Millennials and Gen Z are slowly dominating the target audience for each product. This leaves brands with no choice but to adopt clean packaging methods. As a rule of thumb, natural and sustainably sourced packaging is almost always cleaner. Brands need to immediately replace plastics in packaging with biodegradable plastics or paper packaging.