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Recycling re-imagined: Exploring solutions for plastic this Earth Day
Plastics is the key theme for Earth Day this year, by highlighting the need for innovative solutions on plastics to protect the planet. Earth Day is an initiative to educate and grow the environmental advocacy movement worldwide. With the aim is to reduce plastic production by 60% by 2040.
To achieve this aim, it is crucial to rethink the use of plastics with innovative solutions. With a strong call to invest in innovative technologies and materials to build a plastic-free world. We spoke to Amol Karambelkar, Business Manager at Intertek SAI Global to find out more about how to reduce plastic production in Australia.
One of the innovative solutions available to businesses with Intertek SAI Global is the Recycled Content Verification scheme, which allows businesses to communicate clearly about their plastics and recycling practices.
How businesses can use recycling to reduce reliance on plastics
To rethink the use of plastics with innovative solutions we spoke to Amol Karambelkar, Business Manager at Intertek SAI Global to find out more about how to reduce plastic production in Australia.
Why is Earth Day important?
Essentially Earth Day is important to help educate people about the changes they can implement to build an environmentally sound future. Every small positive action adds to the solution, and we each have a role to play to create a better future for the planet.
Why is it important to focus on plastics?
Plastics have a huge impact on our environment, and the campaign this year is to draw attention to the issue, and the solutions. By shining a light on the impacts, such as harming marine animals to human health, impacting beaches and landscapes to waste and landfills, we are aiming to empower people to make a difference.
How is this relevant for food and beverage businesses?
Wherever there is food there is plastic – we want to address this issue by assisting food businesses with practical solutions in Australia.
Plastics is one of the most prevalent materials used for food packaging. It is used in many forms, including beverage containers, bags, wrapping films, and many more applications. Many applications are single-use, meaning it is disposed after one use. This causes issues such as increasing plastic waste in landfills and our oceans, as well as further oil extraction and resource and energy consumption to produce plastic.
It is therefore important to reduce, reuse and recycle as much plastic as possible to minimise its environmental impacts.
How can businesses reduce their use of plastics?
Businesses have a major role to play in the reduction of plastic. We have looked at innovative ways that businesses can re-use plastics as a key resource. Plastic is made of raw minerals such as petroleum, and takes hundreds of years to decompose. In order to reduce production of new plastics, we know that recycling is a crucial step for businesses.
Three things businesses can do to reduce their use of plastics are:
- #1 – Create and design alternatives – Businesses are in an important position to design products to reuse recycled plastic or alternative materials
- #2 – Choose recycled materials first – Design your business production and quality management systems to include the use of recycled materials.
- #3 – Support your local government and peak bodies – Take part in your local recycling program to find ways to reduce waste.
In a nutshell what is Recycled Content Verification?
In today’s world suppliers, manufacturers, and retailers are seeking solutions to ensure that environmental and sustainability claims of their brands are meeting consumer demand for transparency and authenticity.
Today’s consumer is quite knowledgeable and wary of misleading sustainability claims or “eco-claims” that are reported on products and packaging. Our Recycled Content Verification program supports suppliers and manufacturers with validating and communicating the pre-consumer and/or postconsumer recycled content in their material, product, or package.
Our program is based on ISO 14021:2016 for environmental labels and declarations, to identify pre-consumer and post-consumer recycled content in your products. It authenticates the amount of recycled content of your product, providing consumers with verification from a third party to ensure the labelling on recycling is correct.
For the everyday person, what are 3 things we can all do to reduce their use of plastic?
- #1 – Reduce – Reduce your use of plastic, especially single use plastic.
- #2 – Reuse – Find ways to reuse plastic for day-to-day needs.
- #3 – Recycle – There are so many recycling programs out there, be sure to use and support government recycling programs
What is the future of recycling?
Transitioning our current mainstream linear economy to a circular economy is critical to minimising the use of virgin plastic. We also expect single-use plastic products to be banned in more countries. Companies should also think about creating more take-back systems to ensure plastic materials that returned for them to recycle.
Earth Day invites us all to take action
When it comes to plastic and recycling, every action matters. We can all find ways to reduce our use of plastics and find alternatives for recycling. Businesses have a significant role to play and it is inspiring to see the programs that are available to create viable solutions to reduce our reliance on plastics.