Recycling

As a company, we hope to become as sustainable as possible. Next up in our list of things to tackle – plastic .

It isn’t an easy issue to address, chiefly because there are 50 different types of plastic, with many types not currently recyclable. That means that when ones which aren’t recyclable are put into the bin with those that are, we’ve got an issue.  Some plastics, instead of melting, burn when they are recycled, releasing unhealthy chemicals such as carbon dioxide and benzene into the atmosphere. Thus, when these different types of plastic are combined they become useless for manufacturing.

Plastic cotton buds are also a serious problem as they are flushed down the loo and are small enough to fit through the filters, ending up in the water and harming marine life.

So what can we do?

Luckily the UK has woken up to the problem, and the issues surrounding plastic have risen to the foreground following on from David Attenborough’s appeal on Blue Planet. The supermarkets have pledged to eradicate single use plastic packaging by 2025.

In the meantime, our top tips for reducing plastic and making sure that you are recycling efficiently are:

• Buying fruit and veg loose and not pre-packed/chopped
• Invest in a reusable water bottle – not only does it save on plastic bottles but it also keeps your water cold and you can get them in all the cool colours.
• Reusable coffee cup. They are trendy, save the environment and most coffee shops now offer incentives and discounts if you bring in your own.
• Read packaging carefully as to whether it can be recycled – you will be surprised how little is actually recyclable
• Make sure to wash out tins, bottles and tubs before putting them in the recycling. I used to laugh at my boyfriend for doing this, before I found out that if there is any food or drink source found in your recycling then the whole lot can no longer be recycled and has to be thrown in the bin!

Say no to straws:

We have signed up to the Evening Standards Last Straw Campaign and now only serve paper straws at events. We are doing this as straws are non- biodegradable therefore are polluting our beaches, waterways and oceans. A huge 8.5 billion plastic straws are thrown away each year which have been used for minutes but are around for centuries.

Recycling inspo:

In Sydney, they have tried a number of ways to make sure waste is being recycled and have recently found a way to achieve this. They use a Reverse Vending Machine, which rewards the recyclers when they deposit a recyclable material with an award such as a voucher. Let’s hope the UK follows suit.