UK digital retail platform N Brown expects to reduce its plastic use by almost half (44%) by using Polymax powered by Hydropol packaging for its garment bags.
The adoption of the sustainable packaging solution is said to mark a significant step in reducing its environmental footprint and is part of the company’s ongoing commitment to sustainability.
Customers will begin receiving products in Polymax powered by Hydropol packaging starting this month.
The move aims to significantly reduce plastic film wrapping, a major contributor to recycling contamination in the UK. Research shows that one in five people attempt to recycle plastic film in areas where it’s not accepted, and only 9% of flexible plastics are correctly recycled.
"Wishcycling" poses challenges for recycling facilities and can create confusion for consumers trying to make responsible disposal choices.
N Brown said that Polymax can be fully recycled together with paper, plastic, metal or food without the risk of contaminating recycling streams. Consumers can dispose Polymax in their black bins for safe biodegradation or place it in the standard recycling bins.
Polymax packaging can also be dissolved in hot water, leaving no harmful microplastics behind, further reducing environmental impact.
N Brown suggests that if this type of packaging were adopted globally for garment packaging, it could prevent approximately 25m tonnes of hard-to-recycle packaging from harming the environment annually.
N Brown Retail CEO Sarah Welsh said: “Reducing our impact on the environment while ensuring a high-quality product experience for our customers is something we take very seriously. Packaging has always been a key area of innovation for us as it makes up a significant proportion of the plastic that is used across our operations.
“Polymax powered by Hydropol is a really exciting product that offers us the ability to package our clothes effectively without the use of conventional plastic and provides our customers with multiple easy and environmentally friendly disposal options.
“This new packaging is going to enable us to reduce our conventional plastic usage by 44%, without compromising on the quality of our packaging. We’re excited for customers to start receiving some own-brand products in this new packaging this autumn, with the full rollout to 100% of own-brand products set to be complete by the end of 2025.”
Tom Wielicki at Maxim Labels and Packaging added: “We hope that other large retailers in the UK will follow N Brown in choosing a more sustainable future for their garment delivery.”
