We now stock Pillow Wad hay and straw in 100% biodegradeable, plastic free, compostable packaging. This in line with our policy of trying our best to replace as much plastic as possible in our products and packaging.
We recently changed our APL Grain Free dog food to brown paper sacks and this has proved very popular with our customers. It has had an added bednefit to us as well as the new paper bags are tougher than the old plastic ones that often split at the seams during transit to us. Other brands, such as Hollings are also moving away from plastic and we are stocking more of their products as they do.
Customers may also have noticed that plastic is gradually disappearing from the packaging of other products as diverse as reptile thermostats and hamster balls as we work with our suppliers to reduce our impact on the environment. Or suppliers are also using less plastic packaging in their deliveries to us, replacing bubble wrap with heavy duty brown paper, polystyrene with cardboard and plastic bags with boxes.
We stopped using plastic carrier bags some time ago, long before the supermarkets etc jumped on the bandwagon so we were ahead of the curve there. Most customers bring their own bags now but for those who don’t have one we provide cardboard boxes, recylcled sacks or the inimitable “bag for life” for 50p.
Our next step is to replace the clear plastic bags we use for our “bagged up” bird, mammal and fish foods with a suitable biodegradable alternative. This is proving more difficult than it should due to finding the correct size and price. We recently found what looked like a contender but it turned out each bag in the size we need would cost us 600 times as much as our current bags (yes 600!). This would have added 59p to each item which made them not viable. We think we have found another alternative that is only 6 times the current cost (only!) which we think we can absorb without having to increase the price of most products. Hopefully as more competition enters the non plastic packaging market the price will come down further.
We are only a small independant retailer. In the grand scheme of things we know we are not making that much difference but our tag line is “promoting repsonsible and ethical pet ownership” so we have to do something and we would rather lead than follow.
The Angell Pets Team