Reducing Plastic Waste Within Your Business

As a business, it is your own responsibility to take control of your actions and make changes for the better. We are all becoming much more aware of the damage that single use plastic is causing to our planet, filling landfill sites and harming wildlife, so it’s time to make a change by reducing plastic waste.

In addition to reducing your carbon footprint, making sustainable packaging business decisions will position you in a better light to the more conscious consumer. Many of us are evaluating our environmental impacts and making small steps to reduce it, gravitating towards businesses who are doing their bit and offer a more sustainable approach. To help you take a step in the right direction, we’ve pulled together some simple ways of reducing plastic waste in your day to day operations.

Cut out the unnecessary packaging

Whether you’re a physical store or an e-commerce business, consider the amount of packaging used on a daily basis. For stores, looking into alternatives to carrier bags is a big step in reducing plastic waste, switching to a more eco-friendly option without compromising on quality. Printed paper bags, reusable printed tote bags and even recyclable printed carrier bags are all effective ways to be more sustainable without having to leave your customers short. For online orders, look into cardboard postal boxes which not only can be recycled, but their sturdy form is great for protecting the contents.

Pack orders the more ethical way

Especially for more delicate product offerings, keeping them well protected during the transit stage is essential. Nowadays, traditional bubble wrap and air cushion packaging are being swapped out as a way of reducing plastic waste, with innovative businesses finding more environmentally friendly ways to wrap customer orders. A popular approach is investing into an industrial shredder which can be used to break down existing cardboard boxes from other areas of the business to reduce waste and give the material a new lease of life. Similarly, biodegradable packaging peanuts have been developed to offer the same level of protection as the standard kind, except they dissolve on contact with water after use.

Making small switches where possible

Realistically, the majority of businesses frequently utilise single use plastic in some way or another, but small changes can make a big impact in the long run. For example, takeaways offering plastic straws and cutlery can easily go about reducing plastic waste by switching over to paper straws and wooden cutlery. As well as having a more positive environmental effect, these changes can make a huge difference when it comes to the safety of wildlife; an example being beer brands who have switched plastic packing rings to glue dots which maintain the convenience aspect but eradicate the risk to animals. By evaluating the areas of your business which could be improved with ease, reducing plastic waste can start on a small scale and gradually improve over time.