Hydropac Support The Three R’s; Reduce, Reuse & Recycle

Reducing the amount of waste we produce, both as a company and as a country, is very important. Over 200million tonnes of waste are produced in the UK every year, and if not recycled correctly, are sent to landfill, although the total amount of biodegradable municipal waste (BMW) being sent to landfill has seen a reduction in previous years, down to 7.7million tonnes in 2015 compared to 13 million tonnes in 2010. This is partly reflective of the improvements in technology over this 5-year period, but also the raise in awareness to reduce, reuse and recycle.

Reduce

We have addressed the reduction of waste in a number of ways;

• Products such as our ice packs and reflective air bags can be stacked flat, therefore fitting many more to a pallet or courier box than alternatives such as polystyrene boxes. This in turn then means that our customers can buy more in bulk and we are producing less to fulfil the same need.
• Our ice packs are also filled to full capacity using machinery we have designed ourselves, meaning we are not wasting any of the water/gel per pack we fill.
• Also as a result, our ice packs are more compact, and as such we find that many of our customers are now using less ice packs than the ‘so-called’ equivalent from competitors’ offerings.
• Our ice packs will also last longer than competing products on the market, as the film grade and seal quality is superior – this means they can be reused for longer (and less will be produced as a result)
• The eco-benefits of our water ice packs are second to none; they are classed as ‘fit for human consumption’ by independent microbiologists, certified food safe and reduce pollution of the water table.
• To that end, our eco-packaging options are also pollution-free and we have reduced our packaging down for deliveries so there is less to dismantle and waste.

Reuse

The reuse of our products is very important to us; not only do we want to know that what we manufacture is not just being thrown in the bin, we also want to try and help the end user down the line. Just a few examples…

• Our ice packs are the strongest on the market, as they can be reused time and time again.
• Our reflective air bags can be wiped clean for reuse, and offer the cushioning and protection of the bubble as an added incentive
• Our Polystyrene boxes may be bulkier than other products, but can still be reused with care
• Our insulated cool bags are also wipe clean and can be reused for carrying food items (or other items) – a great ‘bag for life” alternative that lowers the user’s carbon footprint, especially as they have an antibacterial coating which prevents up to 99.8% of bacterial growth.
• We can deliver products in a plastic pool tray to our larger users, which we then re-collect and clean for reuse at our end.
Reusing products also results in less wastage in the creation of new products; for example, if an end user reuses one of our insulated cool bags as a ‘bag for life’, that is one less that needs to be made from new with no wastage of materials.

Recycle

As of December 2016, the government report on waste in the UK reflected that 44.3% of households recycle waste correctly under the Waste Framework Directive (2008/98/EC). The target is currently for this to reach 50% by 2020. In addition, the total amount of commercial and industrial waste for 2016 sat at 27.7million tonnes, which has fallen from 32.8million tonnes in 2012.

At Hydropac, we fully believe that all of our products should be recycled where possible, if reuse is not an option.

• We use LDPE (low density polyethylene) for our insulating foam products, as it is the single most recycled material in the world.
• In addition, the cardboard used for our insulated shipping systems is 100% recyclable, as are our ice packs with their unique film blend outer coating and RESY symbol, and our thermal postal pockets (also made from LDPE).
• We’ve also made sure we produce and use as little packaging as possible for our deliveries – forget “frustration free”, we’re going for no frustration and less waste overall. This also lowers our own carbon footprint!

If you need eco-friendly insulated shipping products, then you’ve come to the right place!