Plastic Free July - Join millions of people reducing their plastic waste

Plastic Free July® is a global movement that helps millions of people be part of the solution to plastic pollution – so we can have cleaner streets, oceans, and beautiful communities. Will you be part of Plastic Free July by choosing to refuse single-use plastics? You can read more about the plastic free initiative here.

We believe that small changes add up to a big difference so in 2020 we changed our supplement pouch to be 100% biodegradable. 

Our padded postal bags are also environmentally friendly, being constructed from 100% recycled paper and are fully recyclable and reusable. Our cardboard delivery boxes are made using FSC- materials, and printed using water-based inks and varnish, so are also 100% recyclable. We even use paper based packing tape instead of sellotape therefore your delivery will be 100% plastic free.

The environmental impact of plastic

Plastic is just a form of fossil fuel. Your plastic water bottle, your shopping bag, your foam tray full of vegetables - they're all made from oil or natural gas and it takes lots of energy to make that happen. More than 90% of plastic in 2021 is produced from fossil fuels generating approximately 400m tonnes of greenhouse gases per year, by 2050 it is believed that plastic production may account for up to 20% of global oil consumption and 15% of the global annual carbon emissions

Virtually all of the plastic that has ever been made still exists today as it stays in the environment for up to 1,000 years, and globally in 2020 we produce around 335 million tonnes of plastic each year - that is roughly the same weight as all of humanity combined!

There are three major impacts that plastic has on the environment:

1. Waste plastic frequently ends up in the ocean, causing serious threats to marine life.
2. Plastic takes a very long time to degrade, if it is not recycled then it ends up in landfill sites
3. Plastic production, even when recycled has a notable overall contribution to world carbon emissions.

Plastic recycling has come a long way in recent years and is improving all the time. In the UK however, still only 32% of all plastic is currently recycled. Recycling helps ensure that it doesn't go into landfill but also reduces the carbon footprint of packaging by up to 30%.

The benefits of plastic

Despite the environmental impact of plastics they do have an important part to play in our world. Plastic is light, strong, can be made air-tight. Studies on the overall impact on plastic vs paper are lacking but it is important to note that recycling paper also has an environmental overhead. We must also consider that plastics are often lighter than paper alternatives, therefore when it comes to transport the fuel usage is less which is a beneficial factor.

Whatever decisions you make when it comes to your product packaging, choose to refuse single-use plastic you will be making a small change that adds up to a big difference!