How to Make your Small Business More Sustainable *

*Collaborative post.

If you’re running any kind of business that uses packaging, especially a small business that sells the likes of food, you’re more than likely to have being more sustainable on your radar. If it’s not, then it’s certainly something that should be! I always say that there is no planet b and we really should all be doing more to help our environment, especially when working in the food industry as there is so much waste and over 80% of shoppers are now describing themselves as ‘environmentally friendly’.

One way to up your sustainability game is to change up your usual packaging to compostable packaging which is really environmentally friendly in the way that it’s made, disposed of and broken down. Compostable packaging is made from a combination of various recycled, plant-based materials which would usually include wood pulp, potato starch, bagasse, fungi, cotton and palm leaves.

Compostable packaging is really popular with food-based businesses due to the lack of toxins in the creation and it doesn’t give off harmful particles when disposed of unlike those whose packaging end up in a landfill. Due to the make-up of the compostable packaging’s being so natural, it actually provides benefits to the environment when disposed of, and keeps the soil healthy, which is such a plus!

But how easy is composting after someone has used your packaging?

Tyler Innovative Packaging informs us that it’s really important to ensure that compostable packaging is disposed of properly and this is due to the packing needing the right environment for microorganisms to thrive and consume the materials. Obviously, the best environment for this is a compost bin which can be picked up online for a decent price, as it provides the right temperature, plenty of moisture mixed with the needed oxygen and nutrients. Once in these optimal conditions, compostable packaging will usually break down in around 12 weeks and once ready, the final product will look like dark, crumbly topsoil with an earthy odour. When it’s ready it can be disposed of into garden soil to enrich plants with the nutrients! So it’s really not that tough at all for your customers to make the most of your compostable packaging!

And why is compostable packaging the right option?

Compostable materials are fantastic as they help to promote biodiversity by supporting an important and prolific ecosystem making it the most sustainable option. The way the packaging lessens waste production and the reliance of using landfills is a bonus, but it can even capture and destroy up to 99.9% of chemicals in contaminated air.

If your business begins to use compostable packaging, you will reduce the amount of carbon you uses and you will be making a really positive contribution towards reducing levels of pollution in the air, groundwater and soil.

Overall, moving to compostable packaging can be really rewarding for your brand image as it is likely to encourage those sustainable shoppers to your shop, but it also makes a positive impact on the environment which is needed more so now than it ever has done before.