How to reduce single-use plastic in your business
Single-use plastics are slowly killing our planet.
Currently, 38.5 million plastic bottles are used in the UK every day, less than half of which is recycled.
Plastics take hundreds of years to break down so the plastics we throw away today will outlast our grandchildren. Worse still, they cause further damage by killing marine life, polluting waterways, blocking sewers, and contributing to the production of greenhouse gas emissions.
In the UK, it is estimated that each person produces 75kg of plastic waste each year, and that doesn’t include the amount generated by businesses.
While we can take measures individually to reduce plastic consumption, it is a lot harder to implement these in the workplace.
Here are some of the ways you can help reduce plastic use in your organisation:
Ban single-use water bottles and coffee cups
Invest in filtered water taps and coffee machines and provide employees with branded stainless steel water bottles and coffee cups. This helps employees save money on bottled water and takeaway coffee.
Go digital!
Turn your brochures, case studies and business cards into QR codes. Not only does this reduce paper and printing costs, but it also eradicates the need for plastic packaging.
Educate your colleagues
Some people aren’t aware of the alternatives to single-use plastic. Create a cheat sheet that can be circulated via email or host an information session to explain the changes everyone can make and the alternatives that are available in the office.
Challenge your suppliers
Many businesses are always on the lookout for ways they can execute more environmentally friendly operations. Have you tried asking your suppliers why they use so much plastic in their packaging? Or if they’d consider reducing that amount or removing it altogether? They might start using less plastic in their operations, if not, you can always switch to a more sustainable supplier.
Responsibly source your office supplies
Many manufacturers have removed single-use plastic from the packaging of common products such as tea, coffee, and milk. This is just one small step you can take to reduce the amount of single-use plastic that ends up in landfill.
Invest in eco-friendly cleaning products
Many eco-friendly products come in concentrated forms, or ‘forever bottles’ with refillable solutions that don’t contain toxic and harmful chemicals.
Better yet, some of these products are so effective that you can make further reductions to single-use plastics in washrooms. URIZAP is a unique formulation that removes blockages from urinals, and the cause of foul odours, allowing you to ditch urinal mats and pods for good!
Contact us now to learn more about our next-generation bacterial treatments.