An announcement via Hasbro.com let us learn an important decision for Hasbro’s products packaging in the near future.
Brian Goldner, Hasbro’s Chairman and CEO states:
“Removing plastic from our packaging is the latest advancement in our more than decade-long journey to create a more sustainable future for our business and our world”
According to the extra information from the article, beginning in 2020, Hasbro plans to begin phasing out plastic from new product packaging (all their brands, not only Transformers).
These plans will include plastic elements like polybags, elastic bands, shrink wrap, window sheets and blister packs. The goal is to eliminate all plastic in Hasbro’s product and toy packaging by the end of 2022.
While we are glad Hasbro is taken care of the environment, this is now a very interesting point to debate on how it will affect Transformers collectors. Window sheets and blister packs have been a classic presentation for years letting you check the toys before you buy them. Is it time for closed boxes? What do you think about?
You can join to the ongoing discussion on the 2005 Boards and share your thoughts!
Aernaroth
Solar kills wildlife too (especially solar concentrator/molten salt solar), unfortunately, and both require a substantial footprint to operate effectively.
There's no silver bullet (nuclear, hydroelectric, and tidal electrical generation are additional 'carbon-neutral' sources), but every little bit can help if it's done right. Reducing consumption (such as reducing or simplifying packaging) is a good way to attack the problem from the other side, though.
G.B. Blackrock
I'm not sure why we're seeing this anti-wind turbine attitude (granting it's just the one person). As pluto says, we should be looking at a diverse portfolio of renewable energy sources. Wind is one of those that absolutely should be used.
(I feel like this is dangerously close to a political discussion, but it's on-topic, isn't it?)
Smitty.1981
Another problem with wind turbines is all the birds they murder.
How Many Birds Do Wind Turbines Really Kill? | Smart News | Smithsonian
pluto
Neither solar nor wind are mutually exclusive but rather both (and many other renewable energy sources) are necessary to provide for global energy needs. How effective will solar be in the far north of the globe? Or wind in some becalmed region? The only thing that really matters is the end of fossil fuels.
Smitty.1981
Maybe. However solar is still where it's at. Think about how much it takes to ship one wind turbine, and this this photo give you an idea…
Now how many solar cells could you ship with the same truck? and how much power would they provide?
How much solar would it take to power the U.S.? – Freeing Energy
pluto
The IER is a climate denial “think” tank that focusses on lobbying for coal as an energy solution. They were funded by a Koch and directed by Enron stooges. It is unlikely that any research they present is approaching true or in good faith on the topic.
Smitty.1981
LOL wind…
The Hidden Costs of Wind Power – IER
Solar is where it's at.
Smitty.1981
It's not about where the goes, but where it comes from.
Red Tracks
This decision is completely pointless. Let's say you already recycle, which I do, the net effect of eliminating plastic is zero, because you would have recycled it anyway. Let's say that you don't recycle. The net effect is still zero, because you'll probably be throwing away about the same amount of bulk away, taking up the same amount of space in a landfill.
I've seen people even mention that it's more of a resource issue, because paper is more renewable than plastic, but even that is becoming less of an issue as we move away from fossil fuels with hybrid and electric cars, and wind and solar based power plants.
All this is, is really just cause marketing. Hasbro is doing this, just to seem more environmentally friendly, with no actual benefit to the environment, in hopes that people will buy their product more. If Hasbro starts shipping all of their products in windowless cardboard boxes, I think it will have a negative impact on their sales. I know I'm more likely to buy a toy if I can see the actual product. Photos and box art don't always do it for me. Case in point, I had no intention of buying Siege Ultra Magnus and Shockwave, but after seeing the actual toys in package, I was persuaded to purchase them. On the other hand, Im sure Jetfire is an excellent figure, but since he has no plastic window, I have no idea if it's something I actually want, so I'm not going to buy it. If the packaging had a plastic window, that might be enough to push me to get it. I suspect a lot of consumers are the same way, so I expect Hasbro to see a decline in sales in 2020. Then we'll see what's really important to them. Profits, or their faux environmentalism.
Windsweeper II
All that money would go to businesses providing those things. And Businesses would need laborers to perform the functions required to provide those services.
Hoffman
THEY CAN STILL DO WINDOW BOXES WITH PLASTIC ALTERNATIVES
flynnibus
I’m shocked (ok..not) that people are so focused on their own buying needs.
The big impact is in retail. The reason They like blister packs is because it is space efficient and gets the toy out where the kids can see them. In the shelf war… they are trying to make those young kids WANT that figure. Plus peg hooks is liked for the high visibility of many packages on the shelf.
So you need to use packaging that makes the figure out in the open so kids can see them. We see that in the lower age toys already. For higher end toys with more educated buyers… you can rely on box art.
For battling swappers… hasbro should just step up their tamper proof seals… so buyers can know if a box has been opened. Retailers will adapt if the product becomes a problem. They already do this in problem areas, or certain high value products (Xbox etc).
For QC inspections…. the buyers and their returns will ultimately be the feedback loop. When returns get too much… hasbro will adapt, or lose their buyers.
I do find the retro product questions interesting. That very much can impact buyer interest.
toonbot
PR stunt, environmental friendly hug to the shareholders, goodbye all nostalgia