Dive Brief:
- The New Jersey Senate passed a bill that would prohibit large online and major retailers in the state from shipping products to consumers in cardboard or corrugated boxes that exceed two times the volume of the product being shipped. S226 passed in a 21-15 vote on Friday.
- The bill, sponsored by Democrats Bob Smith and John McKeon in the Senate, and Clinton Calabrese and Annette Quijano in the Assembly, was sent to the Assembly and referred to the Commerce, Economic Development and Agriculture Committee. New Jersey’s two-year legislative session runs until Jan. 13, 2026.
- This is one in a group of packaging and plastic-related bills still in play in New Jersey, including an extended producer responsibility for packaging bill. A couple of bills related to recyclability, plastic reduction and toxics restriction have been reported out of committee.
Dive Insight:
New Jersey has a history of mandating packaging changes. A New Jersey law signed in 2022 took effect this year banning polystyrene packing peanuts and requiring various levels of recycled content in different packaging materials.
Similar to the packing peanuts legislation, S226 is a “common sense measure” for reducing packing waste, Doug O’Malley, state director for Environment New Jersey, told Packaging Dive.
In this session, “There's many bills that are on the Senate's desk in terms of plastic and waste reduction. I think it's really telling that this bill is the first bill that was heard in the full Senate and passed. And I think it just speaks to the fact this is a pretty universal experience and kind of speaks to the public,” said O’Malley, who is hopeful the Assembly could take it up in the fall.
But the New Jersey Business & Industry Association said the legislation represents an attempt to “micromanage sophisticated logistics organizations.” The organization predicts that shipping costs would rise for New Jersey consumers and next-day delivery service could be jeopardized. “Our policymakers should not be determining the best ways to ship without any expertise of their own,” said Ray Cantor, deputy chief government affairs officer at NJBIA, in an emailed statement to Packaging Dive.
Some of the largest e-retailers say they’re already making changes internally to rightsize packaging.
Walmart announced in June 2023 it was implementing technology across half of its fulfillment network to enable custom-fit packages for orders. It said this change could reduce the need for filler by 60% and cut waste by as much as 26%. Amazon has touted its use of machine learning to support implementation of optimized, lighter, rightsized packages. Outside equipment vendors are also eager to serve this niche.
The rightsizing bill was previously introduced in 2022. This session’s version was included in a May 13 meeting of the Senate Environment and Energy Committee. The amended version of the bill provided some exemptions for consumer electronics products. It also added language about conforming to any minimum size requirements established by the U.S. Postal Service or a private shipping company, as applicable. The Department of Environmental Protection and other authorities may impose fines on violators.
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