On the surface, package neutral is an intriguing concept.

In a Sunday New York Times story, titled Incredible Shrinking Packages, the gist is that marketers are beginning to brag about what they're taking out of their products: Crest toothpaste delivered in a rigid tube, but no box; Dasani water in a bottle that uses 7% less plastic; Nestlé Waters saving 20 million pounds of paper over the past five years by printing smaller labels.

Absent the use of any packaging at all, it sounds pretty good to me. After all, toothpaste does need to be contained, so does bottled water (though I'd argue against the thoughtless consumption of bottled water that is so prevalent in America).

But what's driving this movement toward more responsible packaging? Is it consumer preference, or something even more powerful than that?

According to the Times story, Wal-Mart deserves a lot of credit for this new trend.

The world’s largest retailer, known for pressuring vendors to lower their prices, has begun pushing its 66,000 vendors to get rid of excess packaging.

Wal-Mart has promised to become “packaging neutral” by 2025. That means that, through recycling, reusing or perhaps even composting, it will try to recover as much material as was used in the packaging that flows through its stores.

To reach that goal, it is enlisting the help of vendors to cut back on their packaging — for the products themselves and by using less shrink wrap or cardboard for shipping.

But Wal-Mart isn't the only one leading the package neutral charge. Environmental Defense works with companies like McDonald's and UPS to improve packaging, and the Sustainable Packaging Coalition is an industry working group  dedicated to transforming packaging into a system that encourages economic prosperity and a sustainable flow of materials.

It remains to be seen if the term package neutral will gain the cachet that carbon neutral has, but it's a trend that should be wholeheartedly supported.

Carbon Neutral Journal's thoughts are brought to you by Hawtin Jorgensen Architects.

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