Fostering circular product-as-a-service innovations – the case of reusable packaging

Providing products as a service is a way to incorporate circular economy principles and sustainability into business models. For example, packaging reuse, based on circular product-as-a service innovations, is suggested as a means to curb mounting single-use packaging consumption and related plastics pollution. Reuse is still in its early stages of development in certain business-to-consumer applications, such as food packaging. Currently, reusable packaging is primarily offered by start-ups operating in niches. Fostering these service-based circular packaging innovations through public policy measures would require not only niche support, such as innovation funding and support for entrepreneurial experimentation, but also weakening the existing system based on single-use as well as means to support reuse system building. This presentation introduces a variety of policy measures and discusses their effectiveness and acceptability to foster adaptation and scalability of circular product-as-a-service innovations.