COP 26 has flagged up the need for everyone to take on a greater responsibility to protect and save our planet.
There are small changes we can all make to do our bit to help. This includes taking more care when it comes to buying products, ensuring that they are sustainable and eco-friendly.
We’ve taken a detailed look at what makes a product eco-friendly and why you should choose eco-friendly items.
What is an eco-friendly product?
In general terms, eco-friendly products are products that aren’t harmful to the environment. For our products, this means the products are manufactured using eco-friendly materials and recycled materials.
The term eco-friendly is a broad term and can be decided by several factors. These include:
- The materials it uses – is manufactured using materials that are recycled, easily recycled or materials that are gathered from natural sources.
- The way it’s produced – is made in a solar-powered facility, for example.
- The manner it’s used – these products will encourage environmentally conscious actions by the user.
Why pick eco-friendly products?
Picking an eco-friendly product has many positive impacts on the environment. You may think that buying one eco-friendly item won’t make much of an impact but that one product can have a massive affect.
Let’s look at some of the benefits of buying eco-friendly products:
- Protect the Earth's resources
When you buy something eco-friendly or sustainably manufactured, you make a conscious decision to reduce your carbon footprint. In choosing to buy from a company that manufactures their product sustainably, you can be assured that you are selecting a solution for your requirements that has been sourced, produced and distributed in an environmentally conscientious way.
2. Less is more
If an item is made from eco-friendly plastics, it is often thinner than unsustainably produced plastics. Even though they are thinner, they are usually guaranteed to be just as strong and will last just as long.
3. Can reduce waste
Eco-friendly materials are often much easier to break down than their counterparts, reducing the need for landfills sites across the UK.
4. Reduced emissions
When eco-friendly items are manufactured, they don’t produce as many Co2 emissions due to the efficient process. This is particularly the case when it comes to plastics that can be used in the manufacturing of bins.
5. Replacing harmful products
Products such as ShieldMe are made to replace harmful bleaches and chemicals that are harmful to our environment.
Our best picks
We have a wide range of bins made from fully recyclable products and serve the purpose of recycling other materials.
Novelty Smiley Face Recycling Bin
This fun and friendly bin is both eco-friendly and plays a good role in educating children about recycling.
The base of the bin is made from 100% recyclable materials, giving you the peace of mind that you are acting in an eco-friendly way when you choose this bin.
With the fun face design, this is a popular item for schools and nurseries. Each face colour can be used to stand for a different waste and recycling stream. This will teach children about the importance of recycling in a fun way.
The bin is available in a variety of sizes, letting you pick the size you think will be needed for your space.
Eco Recycled Hooded Top Litter Bin – 90 litres
As one of the first bins to combine an environmentally friendly manufacturing process with a classic Victoriana style design, our Eco Recycled Hooded Top litter bin is a popular choice for councils and schools across the UK. Made from 100% recycled polyethene (HDPE), our bins are cost-effective and environmentally friendly.
Recycling polyethene is a vital process for our environment, considering over 60 million metric tons of it is produced annually. HDPE is non-biodegradable and can take centuries to decompose, so HDPE products must be recycled and used again. Our Eco Recycled Hooded Top litter bins are made by shredding, chipping and melting down pieces of unused HDPE into small pellets, which is then ground into powder to be used to manufacture our bins.
Combin Cardboard Combination Recycling Bin – Pack of 5
Manufactured in the UK, The Combin Cardboard Recycling Bins have a minimal carbon footprint and are an environmentally friendly solution to segregating recycling in an office environment.
The base of each eco-friendly bin has been made from 100% recycled UK sourced cardboard.
Manufacturing recycled card produces 73% less air pollution than if it was made from raw materials, meaning Combins are manufactured in a sustainable and eco-friendly way. As the UK uses a forest the size of Wales every year in paper and cards, more businesses must invest in eco-friendly and sustainable products.
Each Combin is supplied with a lid and five pictogram labels which are both made from polypropylene, a recyclable thermoplastic polymer, ensuring the whole bin can be recycled when no longer needed.
If you want to take your bin to that next eco-friendly step, we sell bio-degradable bin liners that will fully degrade in approximately 12 months.
We know there is a lot to do to save our planet but making these slight changes to your buying habits can make the difference more than you know.
If you’d like to find out more about the sustainable bins we have available, please contact our sales team on 01777 858009 or email sales@kingfisherdirect.co.uk.
