Comparative evaluation of alternative beverage containers with multiple environmental criteria in Greece

Abstract This paper is a social appraisal of alternative container systems used for the packaging of soft drinks and beer. A multicriteria method of analysis, belonging to the family of outranking methods, is applied in order to obtain a qualitative and quantitative ranking of the alternatives. The principal environmental impacts of the production and usage of packaging materials constitute the criteria of the comparative evaluation. The results obtained reveal that the current market mix generated by the trends observed during the last years in most countries do not accord with a ranking which would be based exclusively on environmental criteria. Recycling can considerably reduce these impacts. This fact explains the systematic efforts undertaken recently in the U.S.A. and in most of the EC countries for the promotion of beverage container recycling.