With the release of David Attenborough's Ocean and World Ocean day on 8th June, it is a good opportunity to stop and remember that we need to Nurture Nature if we want it to Nurture us. Reducing the use of plastic is one of our core aims here at Alnwick Soap Co.
The Big Plastic Count* reported that in 2024:
- The UK uses on average 35 million bottles of body wash every day with 16 million not being recycled.
- We throw away an estimated 1.7 billion pieces of plastic a week or 90 billion pieces a year.
- We are incinerating more and more plastic, 58% in 2024 up from 46% in 2022.
Recycling plastic is absolutely a good choice, but it can’t fix the problem alone; after a few rounds of recycling plastic has to go into landfill, be incinerated or exported for disposal.
We just need to change our approach to using plastic. This of course has to be at an international level through a global treaty on plastics to reduce production. But as individuals, we can also make conscious choices on how to reduce our use of plastics.
Body wash, shower gel and shampoo bottles are a major contributor to waste plastic in the UK. Choosing plastic-free options for hair and body products such as soap and shampoo bars with zero waste or refillable bottles is a conscious change that we can make.
Here at Alnwick Soap Company we work hard to reduce our plastic usage; our soap boxes are printed by a one of the very few Carbon Balanced packaging printers in the UK who source sustainable paper, boards, inks and are working hard to achieve zero landfill status (they’re at 99.7% so not far to go!). Our boxes are fully recyclable and compostable too! We use recycled glass jars, aluminium tins that can be recycled in your household waste and refill bags that are fully compostable. Our postage boxes, tape and fillings are all fully recyclable and compostable and our bright pink business cards are printed on recycled paper using the more environmentally friendly method of riso printing that is low-energy, low-toxic and uses vegetable based inks. And we’re still thinking of new ways to nurture nature in some new products coming soon.
*What is the big plastic count? Get involved
The Big Plastic Count is organised by Greenpeace and Everyday Plastic. It aims to gather more, game-changing evidence to push for more action on plastic. Schools, households and community groups and businesses up and down the country counted their plastic waste for a whole week in March to reveal the state of the UK's plastic waste problem. Click here for more information: https://thebigplasticcount.com/