Leveraging Life Cycle Assessment for Informing Packaging Eco‐Design and Eco‐Modulation

ABSTRACT Eco‐modulation is designed to promote the adoption of eco‐design. However, in practice, its application is mostly concentrated on end‐of‐life (EoL) optimization. This study addresses the gap by proposing a framework to assess product–packaging systems as integrated units throughout the full life cycle. Using ISO‐conformant life cycle assessment (LCA), four cradle‐to‐grave studies were conducted for 16 representative North American product‐packaging systems (2022–2024), including three cements, five milk products, four shampoos, and four bottled waters. The study includes product loss rate and evaluates eco‐design strategies across the supply chain. Results show that for high‐impact products such as cement and milk, reducing product loss yields the greatest environmental footprint (EF) reductions. In contrast, for shampoo and bottled water, a combination of loss reduction, increased recycled content, and enhanced EoL recovery proves most effective. These findings challenge current eco‐modulation policies that prioritize material recovery, demonstrating that broader supply chain strategies can deliver significantly higher sustainability gains. The study offers insights to create incentive systems that account for full life cycle potential environmental impact, not just EoL attributes.