WE ARE OFFICIALLY A 'PLASTIC FREE' COMPANY | Blog

We are reminded daily of the effects that global pollution is having on our planet. You only have to switch on the news, open a paper or scroll down your social media feed to see the harrowing images of sea life being devastated or mountains of plastic waste filling our land.

Here at Lime Blue we have always encouraged our employees to reduce waste as much as possible and for many years we have used our recycling bin; refilled our water bottles using a large water cooler as well as a shredder to reduce the amount of paper waste.

When Kate Smart from Affinity Merchandise, who is a an ambassador of Plastic Free Maidenhead, approached us to get on board with the initiative we jumped at the opportunity.  We knew that there was more that we could be doing, and we were already thinking of how we could influence our supply chain and clients to do more too.

Through the scheme we have now almost eliminated the one-use plastic that we use in the office. Some of the changes we have made include using a local dairy to deliver all of our milk in glass bottles; stopped using a plastic soap dispenser and we now give all our staff, clients and suppliers refillable bamboo coffee cups to use onsite at events.

We now routinely ask suppliers to use biodegradable packaging or pack clothing with non-plastic wrappers. We also encourage our clients at events to recycle any paper and we also re-collect all plastic name badges so that they can be re-used.

What has struck me is how surprisingly easy it was to make the changes and the exercise has certainly made me look at my consumption of one-use plastic at home too. There is definitely a ripple effect with this kind of initiative, and it must be said that, Kate and her colleagues are doing amazing work spreading the word to local companies and beyond. 

I recently attended a Maidenhead Plastic Free event, held at MyWorkSpot offices, where I was delighted to receive the Lime Blue award for becoming a Plastic Free champion. We have now set up an annual review to make sure that we maintain our status and continue to minimise the amount of plastic we consume as a business.