Zulu & Zephyr goods now travel from our makers to you in our biodegradable, corn starch garment bags that are home compostable. Switching from plastic poly bags to a biodegradable alternative has been a big step in eliminating plastic from our sampling & production process. Now our sights are set on our warehouse & dispatch - from April 2019 all online orders will be packaged in 100% recycled eco mailers that are compostable or recyclable.
PACKAGING
As an ongoing commitment to reducing our plastic footprint, we are in the process of gaining Plastic Neutral certification on our product range which is an assessment of the volume of plastic used in our products, primary and secondary packaging. We can then reduce and/or offset this through projects run by Plastic Collective, which guarantee that 70% of our offsetting fees fund remote and vulnerable community recycling projects.
Zulu & Zephyr marketing material is printed on carbon neutral ECOstar paper stock that is 100% recycled post-consumer.
Here at Zulu & Zephyr we are committed to having a positive impact on the environment and global community, not only within our supply chain but all facets of our brand. We take pride in knowing that our product also serves as a purpose for the greater good. Zulu & Zephyr is a made for the sun, the salt & the sea. The impacts plastic pollution has on our oceans is an issue close to our hearts and the reason why eliminating plastic from or supply chain has been forefront of our sustainability policy.
GARMENTS BAGS
Our bio garment bags are made predominantly from corn starch as well as the binding agents Polylactide (PLA) and Polybutyrate Adipate Terephthalate (PBAT). PLA is derived from corn waste while PBAT is a petroleum derived product. Although we are cautious about an ingredient that is partially derived from oil, at this stage there are no suitable binding agents that are plant-based and can biodegrade quickly enough to meet the home compostable criteria. While petroleum is not renewable, it is in fact a naturally formed substance and interestingly the process used to make PBAT ensures it is fully biodegradable when composted, as opposed to traditional plastic that is engineered to last as long as possible. This is verified by the product certifications which you can read more about here
OUR IMPACT
Since transitioning to biodegradable garment bags in 2018, we would have saved countless plastic bags from ending up in landfill. Compared with using the industry standard plastic poly bags, which would remain in the environment or landfill for 20+ years - our bio garment bags have already broken down. Within 6 months at least 90% of our garment bags have become organic matter.
E-COMM MAILERS
We use 100% recycled paper mailers and boxes for all online and wholesale orders. All online orders are shipped in FSC certified, post consumer recycled paper mailers.
Using recycled paper reduces our need for raw materials as well as diverts countless tricky-to-recycle polymailers from landfill. Our paper mailers can be recycled in curbside bins or added to your home compost as a carbon component.
Since we begin using recycled paper mailers to ship all online orders, we have saved approx. 2500kg of plastic per year. That’s a big reduction in non-renewable petroleum based raw materials, instead we are using post-consumer paper material which is a natural, renewable and recyclable resource.
The purchase of our e-comm mailers also contributes to the removal of plastic and pollution from the ocean. In 2020 we removed over 210kg of plastic waste from the ocean through Grounded Packaging and their support of Seabin Project. Read more about this and our own pledge to 1% for the Planet below.