Wal-Mart's Packaging Scorecard is a measurement tool based on specific metrics that let suppliers evaluate their packaging against all the other packaging in a product segment. After giving suppliers a year to become familiar with the Packaging Scorecard and to input data about the packaging they use for each product, the retailer plans to begin using the scores in its purchasing process as of Feb. 1, 2008.
Scores are calculated based on the following weights: 15% for greenhouse gas/carbon dioxide generation per ton of production; 15% for material value; 15% for product/package ratio; 15% for container cube utilization; 10% for transportation; 10% for recycled content; 10% for recovery value; 5% for renewable energy; and 5% for innovation. Packages that score well on one criterion may not rate as high in another, indicating an area of potential improvement. Since each package is compared with its peers, a ranking can change if another supplier improves its packaging.