Sustainable Packaging
Cycling is one of the most sustainable modes of transport.
Yet it is one of the slowest in the sports industry to address its wider impact upon the environment, supply chain, responsible production and waste generation. After cycling became a talking point at COP26* in 2021, there has been a slight shift in the way businesses, manufacturers and marketing agencies in the global cycling industry have been addressing their environmental & social impact.
Bikey Wipes is hoping to influence the narrative the cycling industry takes on the environment, and the potential of the industry to manufacture products which are durable, high-quality and have minimal impact on the environment across the supply chain.
When Bikey Wipes was first conceptualised, sustainable production, consumption & waste were some of the core factors that influenced how the brand and product have developed. After securing a reputable manufacturer that produced to the specifications required for compostable, durable wipes, the next challenge was packaging.
Navigating the sustainable packaging space when first starting out in e-commerce is like driving under torrential rain- it can be hard to see the signs of where to go and what to do. Firstly, there are many terms which are used almost interchangeably and adds to the confusion of figuring out what is best for your product, business, and brand. Terms such as ‘sustainable packaging’, ‘bio-packaging’, ‘eco-film’, ‘eco-packaging’, ‘compostable packaging’ or ‘bio-degradeable packaging’ and the various meanings they hold is enough to make anyone confused.
In Australia, matters are further complicated with an absence of coordinated waste management across state & territories. Waste collection is very fragmented due to differences in legislative requirements & jurisdictional approaches to waste management, recycling and disposal. This has created a complex structure of regulation, fees, policies, and administration across state & territories. With such variation, a lack of national approach in legislation and product stewardship, and a steady increase of waste year on year (both recyclable and non-recyclables), Australia is facing a ‘war on waste’. Adding to that pressure and the confusion is the alarming fact that approximately 84% of all plastic is sent directly to landfill.
Given all of this, you can imagine the concern and confusion when first stepping into the land of product design, manufacturing, and e-commerce as a new Australian-made & owned business. Bikey Wipes was founded on the belief and with the vision that bike cleaning products should be plastic free, mobile, and non-reliant on water. To compliment this through packaging, Bikey Wipes founders decided to minimise as much plastic reaching landfill as possible. This starts from the product itself, where the wipes are micro-plastics free and are designed to be compostable. However, the complication of not wanting to contribute to Australia’s plastic problem but needing to package Bikey Wipes with a sealable, durable casing (to retain moisture & ensure cleaning agent efficacy), means that plastic packaging is unavoidable for now.
To minimise plastics going into landfill by an emerging business – and one that actively promotes sustainable & conscious living within the environment – the solution is to use a plastic that is hardy and easy to reuse or recycle. The packaging currently being used for the full cylinders, are a rigid form of HDPE (High-Density Polyethylene - recycling symbol 2), which is one of the most common forms of eligible recyclable plastics in Australia. Rigid HDPE is versatile and if not re-used, then the plastic is broken down and turned into plastic pellets to be moulded into new bottles, cylinders and other forms of containers for re-use in the supply chain. Until we discover alternative forms of packaging that is suitable and more sustainable for Bikey Wipes, HDPE Plastic is currently the only reliable form of packaging material that can be fully recycled within Australia’s waste management systems.
Over time and as product research & development continues for Bikey Wipes, the packaging will evolve and adapt where necessary, to changing laws & policies of waste collection & disposal in Australia. The good news is that product packaging research is underway, and the team are excited to test, refine and finalise on new ways of storing bike cleaning products (wet wipes) without compromising on bike performance.
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