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Why recycled plastic?

Every day we are presented with new sustainable products. There are so many different materials out there that are promoted as sustainable, whether that's bamboo, wood, silicone or recycled plastic. We have been asked many times why we decided to manufacture with recycled plastic as opposed to these other materials available, and here's why. 

Keeping plastic out of landfill
  1. We're reducing plastic ending up in landfill.

    Australians use more than 1 billion recycled milk bottles every year. By using these milk bottles to create our toys and tableware, we're diverting some of this waste from ending up in landfill, and potentially landing in our beautiful oceans.

  2. We're using less natural resources by using material that already exists.

    Anything we create that's made from new material means using our planets resources, whether that is trees, plants, oil, water, or coal. When we manufacture using recycled plastic, with the exception of the energy required to power the machines, we don't need to use any new material to create our products.

    Bowl made from recycled milk bottles
  3. We're reducing our carbon footprint by using locally sourced recycled plastic.

    The carbon footprint for the products we consume can be enormous. Material is typically sourced from one country, shipped to another country for manufacture, then shipped all the way to Australia to be sold. We wanted to create demand for Australia's recycled plastic, which meant the natural progression was to manufacture here in Australia too. Yes our products are still shipped around Australia, but our carbon footprint is greatly reduced by not being transported from overseas into Australia for distribution.

  4. We're creating demand for an industry that is desperately needed.
    Company founder, Miranda, manufacturing with recycled plastic

    We all know what happened to Redcycle recently - they unfortunately had to close down, primarily due to a lack of demand for the products that would be created from their recycled soft plastics. As part of the recycled plastics industry, it was very very hard to hear this. The recycled plastics industry has the capacity to add huge value to global economies, creating industries and jobs, as well as the environmental benefits. Which is why companies like Happy Planet Toys need your support, so we can then support this important industry.


  5. Recycled plastic is recyclable.

    One of the most common questions we're asked is how do you recycled toys? Unfortunately it's very difficult to recycle toys due to the mix of materials used, and Did you know HDPE plastic (the plastic that's used to create milk bottles) can be recycled up to 9 times? And it can be recycled through your standard kerbside recycling, as long as there are no additional parts like bolts or batteries.

We know that recycling should never be the answer. We need to reduce our reliance on products made from new materials. But while we do this, creating innovative and highly functional products from our plastic waste is critical.

Shop our recycled plastic, Australian made toys.

Shop our recycled plastic, Australian made tableware.

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