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Co-creating a Vision and Roadmap for Circular Economy in the Food and Beverages Packaging Sector

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Abstract

This paper describes a collaborative process engaging key stakeholders to co-create a shared vision for 2035 and a roadmap for action to support a circular economy transition in the packaging of the food and beverages sector in Portugal. Although the need to engage stakeholders is widely acknowledged, few collaborative initiatives can be found in the literature for scoping and visioning of circular economy strategies. Three main stages are broadly proposed to conduct a participatory scoping and visioning process, including the conduction of exploratory interviews and a collaborative visioning workshop supported by desk-based research. Engaging agents from across the value chain and from critical knowledge fields allowed to create a common understanding of major challenges, opportunities, and key circular strategies to implement towards a desired vision of the future. Five main areas of action were identified: innovation and research, new business models; eco-design; marketing and communication; and regulation and incentives. This work allowed to draw useful lessons for the sector: (i) there is a great potential of circularity in the food and beverages packaging sector; (ii) the engaged stakeholders have the will to continue collaborating. Regarding the proposed process: (i) a process of this nature allows the co-creation of a shared vision and the definition of a roadmap to achieve it and (ii) engaging stakeholders from all the value chain in structured discussions and collaborative exercises may contribute to promote social learning and knowledge co-creation. Some limitations can be pointed out; an important one is the dependency on stakeholders’ engagement, which could bring additional challenges when implementing a process of this nature. Although the process can be applied in different contexts and sectors, the obtained results are specific for this sector in the Portuguese context.

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Acknowledgments

The authors would like to acknowledge the financial support of Sociedade Ponto Verde (SPV), responsible for managing waste from non-reusable packaging through an Integrated Packaging Waste Management System. We thank in particular Manuel Pássaro and Susana Ângelo from SPV for their support throughout the study. CENSE is supported by the Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technology (FCT) through the strategic project UIDB/04085/2020. The authors also want to thank all the interviewees and workshop participants that have generously contributed with their time and knowledge to this process.

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Funding

Sociedade Ponto Verde (SPV), responsible for managing waste from non-reusable packaging through an Integrated Packaging Waste Management System, supported the present study.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. CENSE – Center for Environmental and Sustainability Research, NOVA School of Science and Technology, NOVA University Lisbon, Campus de Caparica, 2829-516, Caparica, Portugal

    Rita Lopes, Rui Santos, Nuno Videira & Paula Antunes

Authors
  1. Rita Lopes
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  2. Rui Santos
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  3. Nuno Videira
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  4. Paula Antunes
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Contributions

All authors contributed to the study conception and design. Material preparation, data collection, and analysis were performed by Rita Lopes, Rui Santos, Nuno Videira, and Paula Antunes. The first draft of the manuscript was written by Rita Lopes, and all authors commented on previous versions of the manuscript. All authors read and approved the final manuscript.

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Correspondence to Rita Lopes.

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Lopes, R., Santos, R., Videira, N. et al. Co-creating a Vision and Roadmap for Circular Economy in the Food and Beverages Packaging Sector. Circ.Econ.Sust. 1, 873–893 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s43615-021-00042-z

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