environment
reduce | reuse | recycle
reduce
The volume of lightweight plastic shopping bags used in New Zealand in 2006 was 8,000 tonnes, that's about 22 million shopping bags each week, or approximately 1 billion bags for the year.
(source: Reduce Rubbish). While it represents a comparatively small percentage of the total waste stream, a reduction in this number of at least 20% is now a target for retailers under The Packaging Accord 2004.
Both Foodstuffs NZ Ltd and Progressive Enterprises Ltd are actively working towards achieving this target through their Make a difference campaign -
encouraging shoppers to purchase reusable shopping bags.
At totel, we totally support this initiative - our reusable bags have been designed and produced solely to help achieve this reduction. We see the key to achieving a shift in behaviour of shoppers is to provide a bag that is visually appealing - that people actually want to buy, and that is also credible in all that it claims to be.
Use one grandtotel bag for a year and you could reduce the number of supermarket shopping bags you use by 156 a year*. If 1,000 people used 2 grandtotels each for a year, that's a reduction of 312,000 bags.
Collectively the reduction will be significant.
* one grandtotel holds an average of the contents from 3 regular supermarket shopping bags.
what we are doing...
- Reducing virgin resources: using 10% recycled plastic in the bags and recycled paper products where possible.
- Reducing shipping miles: manufacturing in NZ - compared to other similar products, and utilising local businesses and suppliers.
- Reducing waste to landfill: communicating and encouraging recycling of (totelled) bags.
- Reducing vehicle resources: travel planning.
- Reducing print and paper resources: no business cards or letterhead have been printed.
- Reducing office waste: recycling systems for paper, plastic, glass and aluminium.
still working on...
- Reduce percentage of virgin materials in products.
- Measure and monitor carbon emissions including manufacturing and transport related emissions to ensure these are maintained and/or reduced.
- Reduce waste to landfill: further increase recycling.
- Development of totelbreakdown range to further reduce plastic bag use.
reuse
Our bags been specifically designed to be reused - again and again. They are durable, light and can be folded for easy storage and reuse. Graphics for the bags were designed to deliver a fresh, vibrant shopping bag with high visibility and impact, encouraging use and communicating key messages about reusing and recycling.
what we are doing...
- Reusing tertiary packaging throughout the distribution chain.
- Reusing office supplies: envelopes and paper.
still working on...
- Development of the subtotel - a compact companion for the grandtotel.
recycle
The grandtotel and subtotel have been designed to be recycled. The bag and tag are each constructed from a single material and avoid stickers or components that could contaminate the recycling stream. The recycle logos and plastic resin identification code are clearly labelled on the bags and tags, and recycling is clearly communicated and encouraged.
If shoppers cannot have the bags recycled through local recycling facilities, totel ltd will collect any bags that have passed their reusable life (they're totelled!). We will have these bags recycled with manufacturing process waste.
By encouraging recycling, we reduce the total amount of virgin materials required, support local recycling initiatives and reduce the amount of waste going to landfill.
what we are doing...
- Recycling manufacturing waste (process waste) into rubbish bags.
- Recycling solvent waste from printing.
- Recycling any totelled bags that are returned to us.
- Recycling in the office of paper, plastics 1,2 and 4, glass and aluminium.
still working on...
- Increasing recycled material in production.
- Increasing office recycling to include all plastics.
Our products communicate about reduce, reuse and recycle as no like product has done before. The totel brand clearly communicates our vision and signals our intention to make a positive contribution to the New Zealand environment.
