Recyclable Packaging is an Important Issue for Many Consumers

If I buy a large item that has a lot of packaging, one of the first things I look for now is whether it can be recycled or how much of it can be used again. Recyclable packaging has become an issue that has taken on growing importance as consumers become more environmentally aware. Many specifically look for items with minimal packaging but when such packaging is unavoidable, such as for protecting a new domestic appliance, the amount of it that can be recycled is always a factor. Ideally, I always prefer the delivery organisation to take it away with them where possible to recycle.

Plastic Bags need to be Used More than Once

In our throw-away society, we had become accustomed to dumping plastic bags once we had used them just the once. Thankfully, it has become clear in recent years, that this is not best for the environment and that re-using them is a more eco-friendly approach. I tend to use them over and again when I go to the supermarket until they split. In respect of plastic bags, supermarkets have taken the lead and played an important role in helping cut down on their use by encouraging their re-use with various incentives such as reward points. Its much better than seeing them dumped in landfill sites.

Cardboard Packaging Gives an item Added Protection

Sturdy cardboard packaging is important in helping protect items that are at risk of being damaged or scratched while in transport. And while we are in an age where the eco-conscious consumer can be more selective that previously when it comes to items that have a large amount of cardboard packaging, the benefit is that cardboard packaging is easy to recycle. Sometimes, larger boxes that are used to deliver an item to the home can be easily re-used and they make perfect storage containers if you are looking to put a box of items in your loft for safe-keeping or to take to a local sale.

Recyclable Packaging is Good for the Environment

In an age where more people are actively conscious about the way they interact with the environment and the impact they have on the planets wellbeing, recyclable packaging is a factor more consumers are looking for when they make a purchase, however large or small. Packaging is important for a retailer in attracting a potential buyer to a product, but now part of that consideration is not just about visual appeal, its also about the disposal of that packaging once the product has been installed at home. Recyclable packaging, that is easy to dispose of, will appeal to more consumers than ever.

Biodegradable packaging may not always be what it seems

The problem with Biodegradable packaging is that it may not always be what it appears to be. While most of the elements of a package may be biodegradable, some will take considerably longer than other parts to break down naturally. A good example of this is egg cartons, which biodegrade fairly quickly. However, the sticky coated labels on the boxes may in fact take a lot longer. If you are looking to buy products with biodegradable packaging, the key is to examine them carefully and may be peel off parts that will take longer to break down to dispose separately.

Is the end in sight for the humble plastic bag?

Stand near the tills of any large supermarket chain store and you’ll notice that fewer customers are using the free Plastic bags available in order to take their shopping home. And that’s if the bags are free.

Some stores are now charging for plastic bags – and given the choice of a flimsy bag for 5p and a strong, larger one for 10p, many customers are opting for a bag that’s obviously meant to be reused. If it costs an extra 10p each time you shop, there’s more chance you’ll remember to take your reusable bag with you.

Other supermarkets are choosing to offer jute-woven or cloth bags as viable alternatives to the plastic bag. Made from funky materials and with witty marketing straplines about recycling, these bags can make the user feel good about themselves for opting to pay for a reusable bag.

At just a few pounds each for a fabric bag, these bags are now being used outside the supermarket arena, with students using them to carry their books and the health conscious carrying their gym kit in them.

The end could indeed be in sight for the humble plastic bag.

Wheelie bins still need plastic bin bags

Anyone who’s walked past a collection of full wheelie bins at the end of an alleyway know just how much week-old rubbish can stink. Which is why the invention of the wheelie bin hasn’t rid us of the need for bin bags.

Before wheelie bins, families up and down the country had an assortment of different bins, with many households doing away with a large outdoor bin in favour of the bin bag – putting out exposed bins for the bin men each week.

As there was no rule insisting you used a bin, these bags were left exposed lawfully – but that didn’t stop an array of animals from rats and stray foxes to pet cats biting their way through the bags to get at the stale or mouldy food from within.

With wheelie bins came the rule against exposed Bin bags, with refuse collectors refusing to collect rubbish not in the wheelie bin. But anyone who thought having a wheelie bin meant not needing bin bags soon discovered their mistake once their bin started to smell!

Any rubbish stuck to the bottom of the wheelie bin could remain there for weeks, even with a regular refuse collection. For a while, companies offering a wheelie bin cleaning service sprung up, but the lack of profit in the service saw the quick demise of said companies.

Families once again turned to the humble plastic bin bag to stop their rubbish from smelling out their bins long after the weekly rubbish collection – and wheelie bins were no longer a win for recycling.