ecostore 竹蔗膠樽得到新生命! | A second life for ecostore sugar plastic bottles |

目前香港係冇處理塑料回收嘅工廠，所以有啲塑料會運到其他國家進行回收。公共收集點存在唔少漏洞，譬如污糟咗嘅塑料係唔可以被循環再造, 咁樣以致其他喺箱度嘅塑料都會一齊被丟到堆填區。所以 ecostore 選擇將自己的空樽運返新西蘭。

即使係通過緩慢嘅平郵，當然都會留低碳足跡。但係我哋亦致力用其他方式去減少返。例如，我哋嘅樽係由甘蔗製成，甘蔗是一種可持續同可再生嘅來源，可以喺大氣層中消除碳！ 同其他用石油化學品製成嘅塑料非常唔同。當我哋香港嘅客人將 ecostore樽送返給我哋時，我哋會確保佢哋處於乾淨同乾爽嘅狀態，然後再將佢哋運返紐西蘭。當佢哋到達紐西蘭倉庫之後, 新嘅旅程就開始喇。竹蔗膠樽會被磨成碎塊, 再清洗, 然後被溶成形狀大小一樣嘅膠板。最後就係溝入新嘅竹蔗塑膠去造成新樽, 開展新生命! 咁意味住我哋亦都減少咗對新甘蔗塑料嘅使用。

喺重複使用現有材料時，我哋對產品嘅整個生命週期承擔更大嘅責任。雖然品牌認為呢個係目前最好嘅解決方案，但我哋會繼續尋找可以改進同更具可持續發展性嘅地方。ecostore 致力對保護世界環境負責任。透過研發竹蔗塑膠同埋將佢哋回收再造, 成功創造咗一個循環經濟!

 

Currently, there is no plastic recycling processing available in Hong Kong and material is shipped to other countries for recycling. Collection at public collection points is problematic due to contamination with soiled plastic which means the collected plastic goes to landfill anyway. Shipping our own empty bottles back to New Zealand, even by slow surface mail, does, of course, leave a carbon footprint. However, we reduce our carbon footprint in other ways. For example, our bottles are made from sugarcane, which is a sustainable and renewable source that removes carbon from the atmosphere while it grows! ‘Carbon positive’ – unlike plastics that are made from petrochemicals.

When ecostore bottles are returned to us by our Hong Kong customers we ensure they are in a clean and dry condition before we ship them back to New Zealand. Once they reach our factory in New Zealand the processing begins. Our sugar plastic bottles are ground into small pieces, then washed, and finally processed into uniform-sized pellets.  Combining with new sugar plastic, we produce new bottles, giving them a second life. It means that we reduce our use of virgin sugarcane plastic.

In reusing existing materials we are taking greater responsibility for the entire life cycle of the products we make. While we think this is the best solution for now, we are always looking for ways that we can improve and be more sustainable. We’re committed to being as responsible as we can to our environment. Through creating sustainable packaging and recycling them back into the business, we’re closing the loop to build a circular economy!