Consumer packaged goods companies, packagers can benefit from tapping into US$2T U.S. Baby Boomer market and developing easy-to-open packaging designs

Kathryn Mackenzie

LOS ANGELES , June 7, 2012 (Industry Intelligence) – Consumer packaged goods companies and packagers can benefit from tapping into the U.S. Baby Boomer market and developing easy-to-open packaging designs, Packaging Digest reported June 7.

Annually, the Baby Boomers spend an estimated more than US$2 trillion. By 2030, 20% of the U.S. population will be above the age of 65, project several recent studies. By 2050, approximately 80 million people will fit into this category.

This segment will include about 80 million people by the year 2050.

The Baby Boomer generation will become more health-conscious as they age, and will spend more on products such as vitamins, medicines and supplements.

A number of major consumer packaged goods companies including Kimberly-Clark Corp. and Nestlé S.A. are doing research into “inclusive design” packaging. Developments in age-friendly packaging designs include "palm-and-turn" medicine bottles, flip tops and compliance packaging that helps individuals consume the correct dosage of a prescribed drug.

Universities such as Cambridge, Georgia Tech and MIT have developed methods to mimic age-related health issues such as arthritis, which designers can then use to understand how older consumers with these types of concerns will interact with different types of packaging.

Further research and innovation in packaging designs could help companies better understand and meet the needs of older consumers.

The primary source of this article is Packaging Digest, Oak Brook, Illinois, on June 7, 2012.

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