Plastic-free July: Swap your way to Sustainability
Reusable Coffee Cups
As disposable coffee cups are lined with a thin layer of plastic, they sadly aren’t recyclable. Despite being mostly paper, the lining isn’t able to be easily separated from the cup and therefore it can’t be processed as either material. But there’s plenty of solutions and one of our favourites is the Huski Home travel cup, a remarkable vessel made from discarded rice husks. A potentially biohazardous material, Huski Home has repurposed these husks into an insulated mug of many colours for sipping those hot drinks on the go, and best yet it should last you a good 10 years.
Alternative Straws
As one of the worst pollutants of our oceans, single-use plastic straws were successfully banned in 2020, in a movement towards protecting our environment. This change has led to a huge number of replacements, including pasta to paper and everything in between with some even being edible (personally we prefer bar snacks, but that’s the true meaning of zero-waste!). If you’re after the straw that can do it all then look no further than The Last Straw, made from lightweight stainless steel this handy fella extends to 19cm and can be tucked away into its own case, perfect to be kept on your keys. It’s the last straw you’ll ever need.
Bee’s Wax Food Wraps
Cling film could very be one of the worst ocean pollutants as many sea animals, such as turtles, often mistake them as food due to the way they move through the water. Although very useful, its effect on the environment is detrimental to the tune of 2.1 billion metres being used in the UK every year. But luckily with a little craft magic, the wax wrap was created using fabric squares and bee’s wax. Waterproof and clingy, they’re the perfect sustainable solution to keep things fresh as they can be washed and reused. Often made by small businesses in a range of colours and patterns, these little squares can brighten up your sandwich lunch while tackling single-use wrap!
Solid Shampoo Bars
All good things come in bars, and now shampoo is no exception! Even though shampoo bottles are recyclable in most cases, this type of plastic only has 1 or 2 cycles before it’s either downcycled (made into polyester fabrics for example, which usually has limited uses before being thrown away) or sent to landfill. Boycott the bottle and try a solid shampoo or conditioner which is thankfully becoming more common and for many hair types.
Groceries in Kinder Packaging
From plastic bags of fruit to pasta boxes with little windows, the amount of plastic packaging found in the average food shop is outstanding! Many supermarkets are reducing excess packaging and offering recyclable or reusable produce bags, however, the choices we make when picking up goods will affect what we see on our shelves in the future. By opting for loose fruit and vegetables, choosing the cardboard only boxes and glass jars over plastic ones, we’re reducing the demand for unsustainable packaging. With this in mind we take every precaution we can to ensure plastic doesn’t enter our distribution chain, meaning that if you order a Mermaid, everything from bottle to box is recyclable and sustainable!
This list of course no way exhaustive, because thanks to new materials and the people campaigning for our planet making sustainable choices are becoming easier all the time. We’ve still got some way to go on our own journey, but we’re working hard to eliminate plastic in all areas of our business. If your favourite swap isn’t here, be sure to share it with us on social media as well as your upcycled bottles using #MermaidSightings.
This is not an ad, and the above are not affiliate links, but friends of Mermaid Gin.
Photo by Naja Bertolt Jensen on Unsplash.
