At Green Fulfilment, we are committed to reducing our environmental impact and promoting sustainable practices. One area we are focussing on is the reduction of single-use plastic and encouraging our colleagues to choose reusable water bottles and coffee cups.

Britain gets through 2.5 billion of them every year, and the number is set to increase.

An estimated 500 million single-use disposable cups are used here in Scotland every year, with the figure expected to rise to 310 million by 2025. Estimates from Zero Waste Scotland suggest they generate around 4,000 tonnes of waste every year and around 40,000 disposable cups are littered in Scotland annually.

We are taking steps to reduce our reliance on single-use plastic and promote more sustainable alternatives.

Disposable coffee cups are already known to be an environmental scourge, due to their thin plastic lining making them extremely difficult to recycle.

Recent research published by the National Institute of Standards and Technology analysed single-use hot beverage cups coated with low-density polythene and the study revealed that the hot beverage receptacles shed trillions of microscopic plastic particles into your drink.

Researchers analysed single-use hot beverage cups coated with low-density polyethylene (LDPE) – a soft flexible plastic film often used as a waterproof liner.

The findings have serious implications for human health, with recent studies linking plastic particle exposure to a range of conditions including cancers, infertility, birth defects and autoimmune diseases.

We are encouraging all staff and visitors at our three sites here in Glasgow to refrain from using single-use plastic bottles, cups, and receptacles.

We support Scotland’s environmental charity, Keep Scotland Beautiful, and their Cup Movement in our home city of Glasgow.

The Cup Movement encourages people to use reusable cups when buying hot drinks on the go, in a bid to reduce the number of plastic and disposable cups being thrown away.

We have also installed water fountains and water bottle refill stations across our fulfilment centres, so that everyone can stay hydrated throughout the day without having to rely on single-use plastic.

Photo by Ondrej Muzik on Unsplash