The Long Game: Grace Cook on Taking Packaging Sustainability Seriously

When we talk about sustainability in packaging, too often the conversation gets stuck on the basics like PCR content, weight reduction, and recyclability, but Grace Cook isn’t here for checkbox sustainability.

With a decade of experience at household-name CPGs like Procter & Gamble and Kao, Grace has moved beyond tweaking specs and started redesigning systems. Now a consultant with Ramboll, she works across sectors to help companies understand the environmental impact of their entire value chain; supplier emissions, data systems, spec management, and even future climate risks.

In this episode, Grace explains how she went from smashing shampoo bottles as an intern to

embedding sustainability targets into cross-functional design processes. She shares how she helped Kao align real-time packaging decisions with corporate emissions goals, and how organizations can do the same by building sustainability into how decisions are made, not just what decisions are made.

We also talk about:

• How climate risk will impact your supply chain (and why insurance might not be enough)

• What packaging teams can do to support long-term decarbonization

• Why the most innovative packaging materials won’t scale without corporate support

• How a small change, like testing a backup material, can build a case for sustainable alternatives

Grace’s perspective is part data, part systems thinking, and 100% grounded in real-world execution. If you’re looking to move the needle on sustainability, this is one conversation you don’t want to miss.

-The PackStaff Team