Hello and welcome to plastic-free July! We’re going to use this opportunity to talk about sustainable packaging options, a bit more jargon-busting and a little part on our postage packaging…. What’s the problem with plastic? Most plastics are created using petrochemicals. Plastic takes forever to break down and doesn't return to natural materials, it just breaks into smaller and smaller pieces. Although most types of plastic can be recycled it is estimated that in 2015 only 20% of plastic was recycled, 25% was incinerated (sometimes associated with ‘heat recovery’ - burning plastic instead of fossil fuels to produce energy) and 55% was sent to landfill. Scientists estimate that from 1950 to 2015 only 9% of plastic produced was recycled. When plastics and other waste are disposed of improperly it can have huge environmental impacts. It can entangle marine life, damage habitats and lead to starvation or a build-up of toxins in the food chain. Some types of marine life have been found to preferentially feed on plastic, choosing to eat tiny bits of plastic instead of food which can lead to starvation and a build-up of toxins. Plastics attract toxins that ‘stick’ to the outside of them and then leech out during digestion causing toxins to build up in tissue and accumulate further up the food chain. It can take 6 months for a 10x10cm piece of plastic to pass through a turtle’s digestive system. In the UK we use more than 2 million tonnes of plastic packaging each year 'eco' packaging JargonBIODEGRADABLEIn theory, everything is degradable because that just means it breaks down. Biodegradable packaging can be made from bio-based material, petrochemicals or a mixture of the two and because of this they can still harm wildlife, especially as they break down into smaller and smaller pieces. Biodegradable products break down into Water, Carbon Dioxide and Biomass with the help of bacteria, the ‘biodegradability’ of the material is related to the structure of the polymer chains, which means that biodegradable plastics can be plant or petrochemical-based. OXy-DEGRADABLEOxydegradeable plastics are not the same as biodegradable plastics. They are conventional plastics with an additive that allows them to break down faster. Oxydegradeable plastics essentially just create micro-plastics faster, this does reduce the risk of wildlife entanglement but doesn’t solve any other problems. CompostablePackaging with a compostable label should have been independently tested and certified in line with international regulations (ASTM D6400 in America and EN 13432 in Europe). This certification indicates that packaging is compostable in industrial settings, where temperatures will reach high enough levels, unfortunately, this means that in your home compost the packaging may not break down at all. In an industrial compost setting the packaging should disintegrate in 12 weeks and biodegrade 90% in 26 weeks leaving compost, biomass and water. The compost created in this process is also certified as free from toxins - which is great news! The only bad news is that we don't have many industrial composting facilities here in the UK, (we're working on compiling a list), so check with your local recycling before you try and add compostable packaging to your food waste. 'ECO'Eco is one of those terms that doesn’t mean anything. An eco-product could be plant-based, compostable, biodegradable, or even just made from recycled plastics. Plant-based Plastic/PLA/Bio-resinPolylactic Acid (PLA) is a bio-based plastic made from plants instead of petrochemicals. It has similar properties to other plastics like Polypropelene and Polyethene and can be produced using existing equipment. It is typically produced with corn or sugar cane this gives PLA a much lower carbon footprint than typical plastics. PLA can also be recycled with other plastics and within our current infrastructure, which makes it a viable alternative to petroleum-based plastics. GLassGlass is infinitely recyclable, although it does take some energy to do this! Glass is a good alternative to plastic, although because it is more breakable and heavier to transport many manufacturers choose not to use it. MetalMetal - in particular aluminium - is another packaging option that is lightweight, durable and easily recyclable. Unlike glass there is much less risk of breakages and whilst it's still not quite as light as the plastic it's not a bad option. Not all products work well in metal - particularly those that we are used to having in a squeezy tube (if you struggle to get tomato puree out of those tubes you know what I mean! Most metal containers are lined with a thin layer of plastic so that the product inside doesn't react with the metal, but this is easily handled in recycling plants and is much less plastic than is required for typical plastic packaging. What about our Products?Plastic Free: ShadeShade sunscreen comes in plastic-free packaging. These tins are convenient and although they’re not your typical squeezy tube it’s still super simple to use for your whole family and no shaking the tube to get it all out at the end! The Shade formula is nice and creamy so you won’t find any leakage either. Once your tub is finished you can recycle it or reuse it however you like. Plant-Based plastic: Stream 2 SeaThe Stream 2 Sea range comes in Sugar Cane Resin Packaging - (a plant-based plastic). This packaging is made from waste sugarcane which is left over after sugar processing, utilising the whole plant and meaning there is less waste from agricultural products - how efficient! Growing sugar cane absorbs carbon dioxide (CO2) from the air and for every kilogram of ‘green’ plastic produced, 3.09 kilograms of CO2 has been removed from the air by the sugar cane. BadgerBadger products still come in ‘normal’ plastic. They have just launched their Reef Safe Clear Zinc Sunscreen in metal Tin in the US and we are working with our distributor to make more this option available in the UK. ClothingAll of our clothing is printed and packaged by TeeMill, a sustainable clothing company based on the Isle of Wight. Their products are manufactured and sent plastic free and they have worked hard to eliminate as much plastic from their supply chain as possible. They are also committed to reducing the amount of wastewater and chemicals used to dye and print clothing and offset the energy used in their UK factory with renewable energy production. All of our products are printed to order which means that we don’t have to order anything in bulk and risk creating waste by over-ordering certain sizes or designs. You can read more about their sustainable actions here. PLASTIC IN OUR SUPPLY CHAIN and a waste-free future… We are lucky that the companies we work with all have sustainability at the heart of their businesses so there is very little plastic in our supply chain.
Postage options: Where possible we ship in plastic-free packaging, we have tried lots of different packaging options and are currently settled on uncoated cardboard boxes. We are looking into plastic-free glue, tape and sticker options so hopefully, we will have eliminated plastic waste altogether very soon! Waste-free… we are keen to transition to a waste-free system, we currently pack orders with order notes and business cards, let us know in the comments if you would be interested in a ‘Waste-free’ option at checkout!
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AuthorHannah Morris Archives
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