Is using plastic always bad?

The Greenbottle team always watches with interest any debate on the topic of plastic recycling versus the use of materials such as paper, cardboard or even wood in the first instance. There's a great piece in the Guardian this week which broaches the topic of whether plastic is really the eco villain that it is so frequently painted to be; http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/green-living-blog/2011/jan/07/plastic-eco-villain-paper?showallcomments=true#comment-fold

The article raises a number of great points about plastic- particularly when it comes to reusability and long term use. In the example of Riverford Organics looking to provide a durable crate for customers to use again and again, it seems to make sense that plastic would be a good idea in as far as the material is highly durable, and could withstand continuous use over a period of time far better than a cardboard box.  This makes sense- plastic is well suited to long term use, or for producing items that really need to last. Where we  fall down is in viewing plastic as a great idea for any usage that is short term and particularly high volume- such as packaging. It seems pretty crazy that we use so much plastic for short term use- it is a finite resource, and even if it is recycled into something else, ultimately that something else is destined for the landfill site in the end. Plastic can be a good thing, but only when used in a sensible, considered way for products which will be used time and again, and that means using less and less of it for packaging, which is all about disposability.

Hello! We are GreenBottle: Inspiring the world's simplest choice

We are GreenBottle, hello nice to meet you.

We make milk bottles out of paper (and a little bit of plastic). Our bottles are recyclable and unlike normal plastic bottles we decompose in just 12 weeks not 500 years.

This blog is about the world of GreenBottle and inspiring the world's simplest choice.

Come and say hello anytime.