In 2008, the United Kingdom signed the Climate Change Act, committing to rapidly reduce carbon emissions by 2050. Followed by Stacey Dooley’s BBC programme ‘Fashion’s Dirty Secret’, Sir David Attenborough’s ‘Planet Earth’ series and Hugh Fearnley Whittingstall’s BBC documentary ‘Hugh’s War on Waste’, plastic waste and pollution has recently captured the attention of the public in a big way. As conscious consumerism rises, there is newfound pressure on businesses to lead sustainability.
BioPak UK set out to innovate the foodservice industry by offering compostable alternatives to plastic packaging almost 20 years ago. This sustainability movement has rapidly grown since the UK passed its Plastic Bag Ban in 2015 – seeing an 80% drop in use, equating to 9 billion fewer plastic bags across retail.
BioPak is committed to help businesses across the hospitality, beauty, retail sectors and beyond take steps to reduce their plastic packaging and lower their carbon footprint. We believe that working side-by-side, businesses and governments can tackle plastic pollution at the source. We have signed the Ellen MacArthur Foundation’s New Plastics Economy Global Commitment to stop plastic pollution.
We also design our products with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in mind. In September 2015, the United Nations adopted a plan with 17 goals to achieve a better future for all – laying out a path over the next 15 years to end extreme poverty, fight inequality and injustice, and protect our planet. BioPak products, initiatives and advocacy work align with the following SDGs:
Industry, Innovation and Infrastructure
Build resilient infrastructure, promote inclusive and sustainable industrialisation and foster innovation. BioPak’s use of innovative plant-based compostable materials and our work with our manufacturing partners to build an ethical supply chain meet this goal.
Responsible Consumption and Production
Ensure sustainable consumption and production patterns. Our product stewardship and education program to reduce food waste and packaging from landfill align well with this goal. It has led us to start our own compost service in Australia and New Zealand.
We also consult regularly with the UK Government – their target for every household to have access to domestic organic waste collections by 2023 offers a huge opportunity for compostable packaging.
In this report, we have measured ourselves against targets to keep us on track to continue our goal to drive change for generations to come.
Leanne Osborne
Managing Director, BioPak UK
