As fuel prices continue placing pressure on South African supply chains, businesses are being urged to look beyond transport contracts and freight costs and reassess the role packaging plays in distribution efficiency.
According to packaging consultancy Just Design, packaging decisions such as material choice, pack weight, pallet configuration and structural design can have a direct impact on logistics costs across supply chains.
South Africa’s recent fuel price increases have intensified pressure on businesses reliant on road freight, with diesel prices increasing by between R7.37 and R7.51 per litre from 1 April 2026, followed by additional increases in May.
For companies operating on tight margins, rising transport costs are increasingly affecting the cost of moving goods through the supply chain.
Packaging seen as overlooked logistics variable
The company argues that packaging is often treated as a technical or branding decision, despite its direct influence on storage, transport and distribution efficiency.
Every unnecessary gram of packaging adds weight to transport loads, while oversized cartons and inefficient packaging formats reduce pallet density and increase storage and freight requirements.
“Packaging briefings rarely include a line item for transport efficiency, but they probably should,” says Vanessa Bosman, managing director at Just Design.
“The brands managing fuel pressure most effectively right now are likely the ones whose packaging was already designed around how their products move through the real world, not only how they look on shelf.”
Structural packaging reviews could unlock savings
According to Bosman, businesses do not necessarily need complete packaging redesigns to improve operational efficiency.
Instead, opportunities often exist through structural reviews focused on reducing unnecessary material, improving stackability and reassessing secondary packaging requirements.
The company says packaging should increasingly be viewed as part of a brand’s wider operating model rather than purely a marketing tool.
Good packaging still needs to support branding and consumer appeal, but it must also improve supply chain performance, protect products and reduce avoidable costs.
Collaboration becoming more important
Bosman says growing supply chain pressure is forcing businesses to rethink how packaging decisions are made internally.
“The brands getting the most value from their packaging partners are not only briefing them on new flavours or simple updates,” she says.
“They are having ongoing conversations about substrates, format efficiency, SKU complexity and the pressures coming into the system. That kind of relationship creates better design decisions and better business decisions.”
As it seems, rising fuel prices, material costs and ongoing supply chain disruptions are making packaging efficiency a more important commercial consideration for brands looking to protect margins and improve operational resilience.
