Health & Wellness

Glass is the food and beverage packaging option you can feel good about choosing.

Glass is beautiful, transformative, 100% recyclable, and it also has endless benefits when it comes to human health.

Consumer trends show that people are increasingly drawn to foods and beverages that support a healthier lifestyle. Product packaging comes in direct contact with food and beverages and people don’t always realize how packaging can impact human health.

It’s no secret that when shoppers choose food or beverages in glass packaging, they avoid potential risks associated with other packaging. Food producers and beverage makers have known for generations that glass packaging is the clear choice for health and taste.

Glass is Made from Fire and Sand

Glass is made of three natural ingredients that come from the earth: sand, limestone and soda ash. When lightning strikes sand, Mother Nature creates glass. When glass breaks down, it eventually returns to the earth instead of sitting in a landfill. When taste matters, glass wins.


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Glass Naturally Protects What’s Inside

When taste matters, glass wins. Glass is impermeable and nonporous, so it protects the valuable food and beverages it holds. Its natural composition means glass packaging is considered virtually inert, which means it doesn’t absorb or interact with the food and beverages inside. Glass packaging doesn’t allow for dangerous chemicals to seep into the food and beverages packaged inside.
 
Glass is odorless and flavorless, which leaves food and beverages tasting exactly how the producer intended–and how the consumer expects–time and time again. Baby food producers, juice makers and dairy farmers know that glass protects the flavor and freshness of their wholesome products.

The message around the health benefits of glass is reaching shoppers, too. Six out of 10 glass lovers in Europe said health safety  was an important factor in them choosing products in glass packaging, according to a study published by Friends of Glass.


Glass Packaging ‘Generally Recognized as Safe’

The health benefits of glass go beyond taste. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is responsible for food safety in the United States. Glass is the only food packaging material the FDA considers “Generally Recognized as Safe” (GRAS).
 
O-I consistently earns high marks for prioritizing the health of people and planet. Cradle to Cradle Certified™ is a globally recognized program that reviews and scores products across various industries based on five categories: material health, material reuse, renewable energy and carbon management, water stewardship, and social fairness. O-I’s glass containers scored platinum  in the material health category in 2019–the highest rating on the scale. The certification demonstrates O-I’s commitment to creating products that consumers, customers and investors can feel good about.


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