CAUGHT IN THE
CROSSFIRE Should the cleaning industry look for
plastic product alternatives in the quest for sustainability? Cromwell Polythene’s MD,
James Lee, thinks ditching plastic is a knee-jerk, unsustainable response.
It’s easy to feel caught in the middle when conflicting arguments can have a significant impact on your business. That’s bound to be the case in the cleaning industry with the recent uproar about the use of plastics.
No one wants to see a floating island of plastic in our oceans, or the negative impact it can have on our wildlife; however, simple plastic products, including bin liners, make a huge difference to the effectiveness of the cleaning industry.
Not using them would create a greater amount of mess and waste, and make it much harder to deal with material – especially hazardous waste. Using plastic bags makes it simple and safe to collect, separate and dispose of waste effectively. Disposable personal protective equipment (PPE), including gloves and aprons, couldn’t be sustainably made from alternative products, and who would want to collect dog mess in a paper bag which could leak at any moment?
The problem of plastics in the ocean comes about because of anti-social behaviour, like littering, and ineffective waste management processes. Around 85% of the plastic in the ocean comes from developing nations, so a ban in the UK is not the answer: rather, we need to use our resources more effectively and help others do so too.
BACK TO BASICS Switching from plastic to alternative materials, such as glass or cardboard, is often suggested to be more ‘green’. However, this can lead to other sustainability issues, such as increased C02
emissions in production and transport (due to the extra weight of material), or an increase in food waste.
Without plastic to both protect and display food, much more of it will be diverted from our plates and end up in landfill. This cause and effect must be examined closely before introducing new policies or procedures.
In response to supermarket Iceland pledging to stop using plastic packaging for its own-brand products, the British Plastics Federation said: “Plastic packaging is used because it vastly reduces food waste and is resource efficient. If Iceland implements these measures, there is a risk that the weight of the packaging, carbon emissions, food waste and the amount of energy to make that packaging will increase.
30 | REGULAR
“Growing and transporting food consumes a lot more energy than that used to make the packaging protecting it. Iceland’s proposals target products that will have absolutely no impact on reducing marine litter, which in the UK typically comes from items littered outside our homes. Its environmental footprint will increase, not decrease.”
Before we even consider ditching the plastic it’s also worth noting that Wrap recently revealed that an estimated 7.3m tonnes of household food waste was thrown away in 2015 – up from 7m tonnes in 2012. That figure will only get higher without the correct protective products. For example, alongside our food grade polythene bags we now offer both compostable and ‘ready for anaerobic digestion’ food waste bags. These products can all help reduce food waste, but they contain plastic.
CONFLICTING ARGUMENTS Used properly, plastic will continue to offer a convenient and cost-effective solution to many of modern day life’s issues, especially in the cleaning industry, allowing the transport and storage of cleaning materials as well as waste.
The real debate shouldn’t be about making a choice between plastics and sustainability; it is not that black and white. Using plastic products correctly and ensuring they are recycled or used to generate energy at the end of their useful life means that our oceans don’t need to be under threat and nor does our plastics industry. We mustn’t get caught in the trap of reacting to headlines, only to regret it later when the wider picture becomes clearer.
If you’d like to know more, come and visit us on Stand E22 at the Manchester Cleaning Show.
www.cromwellpolythene.co.uk twitter.com/TomoCleaning
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68 |
Page 69 |
Page 70 |
Page 71 |
Page 72 |
Page 73 |
Page 74 |
Page 75 |
Page 76 |
Page 77 |
Page 78
