Large producers and retailers cut back on packaging

Loads of waste: A heap of packaging waste, and all for only 12 pieces of pastries. Each piece comes in a plastic tray that is encased in a plastic wrapper. Some have an additional paper label. - Filepic

Packaging can make up about one-third of all municipal solid waste. Mindful of the environment and their bottom lines, companies are trying to reduce that.

British supermarkets are selling beer in glass bottles that are a third lighter than they were a few years ago. Unilever, which makes products like Dove cleansers and Sure deodorant, has pledged to reduce its packaging by a third by 2020. Dell is cushioning computers and server parts with wheat straw and a compostable, mushroom-based material, instead of polystyrene.