Refilling is the new recycling
I’ve always considered myself to be a bit of a greenie, I recycle after all! However, last month I took part in The Big Plastic Count organised by Greenpeace and Everyday Plastic.
The aim was to count my plastic packaging waste over the course of a week and record it as part of a nationwide study to understand how much plastic waste we are creating in the UK.
I live in a household of 3 and when shopping I try to look for products with minimal packaging (why do bananas need to be in plastic, they come in nature’s own packaging, right?)
So, I was expecting our family plastic footprint to not be too bad…We consumed 60 pieces of plastic packaging over the week, that’s 3,120 pieces a year. And if all households were the same as mine, the UK would use 87.6 billion bits of plastic every year!
I have long thought that recycling is the answer. In West Sussex, kerbside collections have a recycling rate 53 per cent (well above the national average of 44 per cent).
However, there are many types of plastics that can’t be recycled or can only be recycled once before they are no longer fit-for-purpose.
Even products like plastic refill pouches have a finite life and are difficult to recycle. So, finding an alternative to using plastic is a better solution. Reducing our usage of plastic packaging means less waste and no packaging at all is the ultimate goal ( just ask the bananas). But if this isn’t possible, why not try refilling old containers? Buying a refill instead of a complete product saves 70 per cent Co2, 65 per cent energy and 45 per cent water. It can also often save you money too. It’s worth shopping around; for example, Horsham’s Sussex Green Hub offers a refill service of personal care and household cleaning products.
A bottle of Faith In Nature shampoo 400ml which might cost up to £6.50 to buy in a supermarket only costs £2.25 to refill.
I’m fired up now to start a Refill Revolution.
Here are my tips for getting started:
Start small. Make just one or two changes at a time and build up bit by bit.
Go collapsible. Invest in a collapsible water bottle or coffee cup, they’re easier to fit in your bag and you’re less likely to forget them.
Use a refill service. More and more refill shops are popping up in Sussex.
Go naked. Choose unwrapped options when shopping for fruit and veg.
Plan ahead. It may take some planning as using refills often means buying in bulk… but there are real savings to be had.
Thursday June 16 is World Refill Day, the perfect opportunity to put some of these tips into action. Why not encourage your friends and family to join you? Sussex Green Living have compiled a list of refill shops in the Horsham area on their website www.sussexgreenliving.co.uk or download the Refill App at www.refill.org.uk to search nearby places to refill your water bottle, coffee cup or for plastic-free shops.
Next Green Hub is Saturday June 25.