Packaging Transition | HealthPost NZ

• We are considering changing our paper-based courier bags to courier bags made from recycled, ocean-bound plastic pollution (POLLAST!C).
• As a Zero Carbon business, we are committed to reducing our carbon footprint. We see a need to transition from the paper-based courier bags due to their weight and manufacturing processes.
• The award-winning POLLAST!C mailers are made from certified ocean-bound plastic pollution collected in coastal communities in Southeast Asia. They have:
  • A positive environmental impact by helping to keep plastics out of the ocean in areas with little or no waste management infrastructure, and by reducing the need for virgin plastic.
  • A positive social impact by providing consistent income in the communities in Indonesia where the plastic collection takes place.
  • A positive climate impact due to their lower carbon footprint than paper, compostable or virgin plastic mailers.
• These POLLAST!C mailers can go into soft plastics recycling:
  • Most Kiwis now have access to soft plastics recycling, and we will offer an option for those without access to send their soft plastics directly to the scheme.
  • NZ soft plastics collections are now being effectively recycled locally.

When we introduced the popular paper-based courier bags a few years ago, we felt they were the best option ‘for now’, and we committed to keep across the fast-evolving areas of packaging and waste-management as new solutions became available.

At that time, many companies were switching to compostable plastic mailers, but these didn’t seem like the answer to us: they couldn’t be recycled in soft plastics and contained petroleum by-product, so we weren’t keen to put them in home compost either.

We chose paper-based courier bags because they are filled with post-consumer paper waste and easily recyclable by Kiwi households, many of which didn’t have access to soft plastics recycling back then. There were also concerns about soft plastics recycling being shipped offshore.

On the downside, paper-based courier bags have a higher carbon footprint due to their heavier weight and offshore manufacturing processes using older, often-coal powered technology.

New materials, processes and systems have now become available, and we think it’s time to transition our courier packaging to reflect this evolution.

We’ve made great strides in soft plastics recycling in NZ in the past few years, thanks to the efforts of the Packaging Forum and their Soft Plastics Recycling Scheme.

An estimated 84% of Kiwis now have access to soft plastics recycling, including some more remote communities like Takaka and Arrowtown. The first trial of kerbside recycling of soft plastics is set to happen in Nelson shortly.

Instead of going offshore as they once did, soft plastics collections now go to Future Post (Waiuku and Marlborough) to be made into plastic posts. These posts replace treated wooden posts on vineyards and farms so also help to keep chemicals like arsenic out of our land and water. These posts are Bio-Gro-approved for organic farming and can themselves be recycled repeatedly so this is a homegrown, circular solution.

It’s not just our recycling systems that have made strides in recent years; there have also been exciting advances in materials that have a better outcome for people and planet. That’s where fellow B Corp, Better Packaging Co, comes in, offering courier bags made from certified ocean bound plastic pollution.

Every year 8-12 million tonnes of plastic pollution enters the ocean because there is little incentive for that plastic to be collected instead of dumped or littered.

Better Packaging Co’s award-winning POLLAST!C is made from recycled plastic pollution rescued from the environment in Southeast Asia. It is certified as potential Ocean Bound Plastic - plastic that meets the following criteria;​

• has been, or would be, abandoned​
• in an area with no formal waste management infrastructure​
• is within 50km of the coast​

The Ocean Bound Plastic Certification Program is managed by Zero Plastic Oceans. About Zero Plastic Oceans - Ocean Bound Plastic Certification (obpcert.org)

The certification program ensures that plastic materials are sourced from verified locations, and emphasises traceability and transparency throughout the supply chain, allowing for the tracking of plastic waste from its origin to its final destination.

As a B Corp, Better Packing Co are mindful of their social impact in the communities in which the ocean-bound plastic is collected.

Pollution and poverty are linked – and in the communities in Indonesia where the ocean bound plastic is collected, waste management infrastructure is often non-existent.

By creating a market for the plastic pollution they collect, a consistent source of income is created that helps to raise standards of living.​​

As a Zero Caron certified business, HealthPost carefully monitors and seek to reduce its carbon footprint, and carbon plays a significant part in our business decision-making.

Independent Life Cycle Analysis has shown POLLAST!C mailers to have a much lower carbon footprint than most courier packaging currently commercially available.

They have a CO₂ footprint 75% less than that of a traditional plastic mailer and 30% less even than 100% recycled paper.​

They can be recycled in soft plastics.