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Jerry Bottles

by Posted in 3.6 Businesses & social enterprises Tagged , ,

Jerry sell sustainable steel water bottles to raise funds for water projects around the world.  They love water so much that they give away 100% of their profits to bring water to those that don’t have it.

We sell steel water bottles to raise funds for water projects.  We are committed to promoting the #zerowaste movement and encouraging a cultural shift towards re-useables and sustainability.
Links – twitter – Facebook etc

https://twitter.com/jerrybottles

https://www.facebook.com/jerrybottles/

https://www.instagram.com/jerrybottle/

Please note…

This post was written by the contributor and  is  a PfU.K. Directory submission.

And the Pf U.K. Directory is…?

…a directory of UK-based groups, organisations businesses and individuals who are responding to the problems presented by the misuse of plastic. That does not mean anti-plastic necessarily but certainly plastic-problem aware.

The DIRECTORY is to promote their fantastic work. Read more here…

Got a project?
It is very easy to get a project featured. Each contributor submits a short synopsis of their project, focussing on the plastic aware element and I post it. You can read the submission guidelines here.

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The Plastic Challenge

by Posted in 3.6 Charities & non-proffits, 3.6 Media, arts & education Tagged 2 Comments

 

Do what?

The Plastic Challenge takes place every year in the U.K. in June.

It is organised by the Marine Conservation Society (MCSUK).

The MSCUK is a UK charity “that cares for our seas, shores and wildlife”.

The Challenge

The MSCUK are deeply concerned about the amount of plastic polluting the sea and trashing the beaches. And understandably so. Since the ocean is downstream, much of the plastic trash generated on land ends up there. ” It has been estimated that 6.4 million tons of debris end up in the world’s oceans every year and that some 60 to 80 percent of that debris, or 3.8 to 5 million tons, is improperly discarded plastic litter “. Encyclopedia Brittanica.

You can read more here and see See lots of pictures documenting plastic beach pollution here…

But back to the challenge. The MSCUK “have a vision of a world where plastics don’t end up in our seas and on our beaches, where they persist and impact our marine life.”

So they challenge you to give up single use plastics for a month (June), and get sponsored whilst doing it. The money goes to support MSCUK projects which are many and very worthwhile.

Join In

Should you decide to join in, The Plastic Challenge web page has loads of information including;

  • ideas on fund raising and sponsorship forms;
  • a forum for posting questions and plastic free tips;
  • even a shop selling everything from highlighter pencils to menstrual cups;

Visit now to sign up and join in over at  @mcsuk and #plasticchallenge

Too Late?

Too late for sponsorship? Don’t let that stop you. No matter when you read this, cutting your plastic consumption will benefit you and the environment – whenever you do it. So even if it’s the last day in June… or the first of February… join in anyway.

Other Great Schemes

The MSCUK organise other projects to help combat plastic pollution including The Great British Beach Clean on the 16th – 19th September 2016.

Plenty of advance warning. Check out the details here.

Resources

Plastic Is Rubbish Facebook Group where plastivists discuss issues and share information about unwrapped compostable and reusable products. The fun never stops….

WiseOceans

by Posted in 3.6 Media, arts & education Tagged

We are a marine education company passionate about reducing plastic pollution

Our team Lent plastic challenge profoundly affected us all and we are now dedicated to helping others reduce or remove plastic from their lives which in turn helps protect our wonderful oceans and the creatures that live within them. We have regular blogs about reducing plastic as well as informative articles about marine life. 

WiseOceans is a leading resource in marine conservation jobs, advice, news, events, marine education, information and recruiting marine educators. We are a specialist marine education and conservation company, striving to spread awareness for our wonderful yet fragile oceans and the fantastic creatures that live within them. The oceans are facing many threats and plastic pollution is one of top issues. We passionately believe that education is the key to helping the oceans and the marine life it supports: “In the end we will conserve only what we love, we will love only what we understand and we will understand only what we are taught” Baba Dioum

If engaging in a plastic free/waste free life has encouraged you to do more for the environment then our jobs page has lots of information about jobs, internships and volunteer positions in marine conservation (for novices as well as marine biologists).

Main Website: www.wiseoceans.com

Plastic blogs: www.wiseoceans.com/?s=plastic

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/WiseOceans-190387421023845/ 

Twitter: Twitter.com/wiseoceans

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/wiseoceans/ 

Please note…

This post was written by the contributor. and  is  a PfU.K. Directory submission.

And the Pf U.K. Directory is…?

…a directory of UK-based groups, organisations businesses and individuals who are responding to the problems presented by the misuse of plastic. That does not mean anti-plastic necessarily but certainly plastic-problem aware.

The DIRECTORY is to promote their fantastic work. Read more here…

Got a project?

It is very easy to get a project featured. Each contributor submits a short synopsis of their project, focussing on the plastic aware element and I post it. You can read the submission guidelines here.

Kedel Recycled Plastics

by Posted in 3.6 Businesses & social enterprises Tagged , ,

The Problems Presented By Plastic Misuse & How To Combat Them 

Today plastics dominate our lives. We use a shocking amount of plastic on a daily basis, often without even realising it. Some of the day to day plastic that we use includes plastic carrier bags, water bottles, the packaging that our food is wrapped in, beauty products, sanitary towels and cleaning products.

According to the United Nations Environmental Program, between 22 percent and 43 percent of the plastic used worldwide is disposed of in landfills. All this plastic is being wasted and more importantly, causing huge environmental problems.

It releases toxic chemicals into the atmosphere when burnt, kills ocean life and leaves unnecessary waste all over our planet. Experts are now describing some of the oceans around Australia as a ‘plastic soup’ filled with all sorts of plastic debris. Is this really how we want to treat our planet?

Plastics are here to stay. Literally. In the environment plastics will photodegrade which means they break up into smaller and smaller pieces, but they won’t disappear. To manage the build up of our waste we have a few different options: landfill, burn, or attempt to recycle.

Plastic is a killer. It kills millions of seabirds and ocean creatures every year who get caught up in plastic debris and discarded fishing nets, or end up trying to ingest plastic. In recognition of their impact countries such as Bangladesh or China banned the use of single plastic bags fourteen years ago.  The UK introduced a charge on single use plastic carrier bags in 2015.

What can you do to help?

Environmental and health issues are down to human behaviour. The good news is that this means that there is a recognisable solution, behaviour change. The bad news is that changing people’s behaviour worldwide isn’t an easy task. Plastic is one of the biggest environmental problems, yet it has a pretty straightforward solution: change behaviour.

Reduce, Reuse, Recycle kendal plastics features 2

Three simple words to live by.  If we can reduce our consumption that is great.  If you have to buy plastic then at least make an effort to reuse it. Many things can be safely reused over and over again. If you cannot reuse something then recycle it.  A lot of plastics can’t be recycled so do check with your local authority.

Plastic water bottles

Can you invest in a long lasting bottle and save yourself the hassle and money of buying single use plastic bottles? People spend a lot more than they realise on plastic bottles each year, you could save quite a bit of money by investing in a reusable water bottle.

If you are caught out and you need to buy a plastic bottle, try and remember to take the lid off and rinse it out when you recycle it.  Young children overseas painstakingly unscrew every bottle top from the plastic bottles so that the bottles can be recycled (different plastics) that high income countries ship for recycling.

Food shopping

Instead of using plastic bags, get into the habit of carrying a small foldaway bag in your handbag. Also when you are buying your weekly food shop, or any products, try and avoid buying things with lots of plastic packaging.

Make a song and dance

We need to start questioning companies not only why they are using so much plastic (it costs the earth but it also costs them and therefore us). Excessive packaging equals higher charges for us.

Can they look at innovative ways to protect our produce?  Does a beauty or hygiene product really need plastic in it? It’s frustrating that more supermarkets don’t provide biodegradable bags such as corn based for fruit and vegetables. Don’t be afraid to question companies and try and inspire change.

These are just some of the things you can do to help. There are so many ways you can alter your lifestyle in order to help the environment. You might not think you can personally make a huge difference, but every little helps.

David is an expert on recycling and is passionate about helping to save our planet. He regularly writes for environmental, eco-living and recycling websites and is a key writer for kedel.co.uk, a company that sells recycled plastics.

Here are Facebook and Twitter links

Please note…

This post was written by the contributor and  is  a PfU.K. Directory submission.

And the Pf U.K. Directory is…?

…a directory of UK-based groups, organisations businesses and individuals who are responding to the problems presented by the misuse of plastic. That does not mean anti-plastic necessarily but certainly plastic-problem aware.

The DIRECTORY is to promote their fantastic work. Read more here…

Got a project?
It is very easy to get a project featured. Each contributor submits a short synopsis of their project, focussing on the plastic aware element and I post it. You can read the submission guidelines here.

 

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U.K. water bottle refill schemes

by Posted in 3.1 Disposables & Reusables, 3.5 Plastic Free People, Projects & Campaigns, 3.7 Other Solutions Tagged , , , 2 Comments

Bristol Water Refill

"Refill Bristol is a practical campaign to make Bristol a city in which refilling your water bottle becomes a cultural ...
Read More

Selfridges Water Refill

Selfridges are setting out to tackle plastic pollution in the ocean by "removing all single-use plastic water bottles from our ...
Read More

Bath, Love Tap Water Refill Scheme

A new water refill scheme based in Bath. The following has been taken from their website... Two local women want to ...
Read More

Water Abroad

We sterilize our own water using a Steripen …. but when a bottle refill service is offered we will use that instead. Find refill places here…

Of course water in many countries the water is actually safe to drink – you can find out where here.

And here are a list of places you can refill your bottle abroad

Water Bottles

Check out which water bottle here

Water Bottle Bans

Links to interesting projects that are tackling the problems of bottled water

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Fabric Offset Warehouse

by Posted in 3.6 Businesses & social enterprises Tagged , , 7 Comments

Offset Warehouse is a social enterprise which brings together a huge range of hand-picked eco fabrics and haberdashery, ideal for all textile projects. Whether you’re into fashion, lingerie, interiors, toys, quilts or other crafts, we have everything you need to create a product that not only looks good, but does the planet good, is kind to the workers who produced the raw materials – and that doesn’t harm your loved ones with dangerous chemicals and pesticides!

As well as most of our products being natural and biodegradable we have eliminated all plastic from our packaging. Everything is sent out in recyclable paper and cardboard.

Facebook


Twitter

Pinterest –


Linkedin –

Instagram – 

Blogs –

The Swatch Book

Sew Obsessed

Please note…

This post was written by the contributor. and  is  a PfU.K. Directory submission.

But I have used them. Here are my notes

Being Updated

Have a wide range of fabrics including Peace Silk that is silk made without killing the caterpiller, organic jersey and ethnic prints. You can find them all here

Their explanations of the fabrics provenance were clear and detailed. Each  product is accompanied by a detailed description telling you exactly how it’s ethical. For example their ladybird cotton is :Animal Cruelty Free, Azo-Free, Fair Wage, Low Energy, Low Impact Dyes, Low Water, No Genetically Modified Crops, Organic Certified

This is followed by a more detailed explanation like this “The dyes used in printing the muslin are azo-free and the cotton is organic and completely biodegradable. Furthermore, the weaving and printing is done in a cooperative and certified Fair Trade by the WFTO. As the printed organic muslin is handmade the process uses virtually no energy or water! This print is also available as a cambric.

Know what you are sewing

They give the fabric weight and suggestions for its use. They post vidoes with an introduction to the fabric quality and pictures of the material made up. You can buy samples or swatch packs which are a broad selection of the most popular fabrics. .

Plastic Free Packaging

They will post the fabric out to you plastic free if you request it. I got this in response to my enquiry

” we are currently using cardboard boxes to send out the fabrics anyway. They are sometimes using bubble wrap to separate the fabrics – so if you just get in touch when you want to make the order we we make a note on it and ensure no plastic is used.”

Actually the packaging isn’t completely plastic free. The invoices comes taped to the box in a plastic bag.

And the Pf U.K. Directory is…?

…a directory of UK-based groups, organisations businesses and individuals who are responding to the problems presented by the misuse of plastic. That does not mean anti-plastic necessarily but certainly plastic-problem aware.

The DIRECTORY is to promote their fantastic work. Read more here…

Got a project?
It is very easy to get a project featured. Each contributor submits a short synopsis of their project, focussing on the plastic aware element and I post it. You can read the submission guidelines here.

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Branded Cups

by Posted in 3.6 Businesses & social enterprises Tagged 13 Comments

Reusable plastic souvenir Cups for any event. Premier solution to millions of disposable cups thrown into landfill sites in UK & Ireland each year.

Plastic Challenge – Reduce the millions of disposable cups thrown into landfill sites

Branded Cups pride ourselves on being a supporter of charities wherever possible and being a sustainable organisation not only with the products we supply but also the manner in which we operate. We embrace environmental, social and economic challenges to ensure we are not compromising the ability of future generations to meet their needs.
The philosophy is to supply any and every event with reusable plastic cups, providing a personal service at the most competitive rate possible.
Our knowledgeable experience, enthusiasm and a desire to go the extra mile for each client ensuring they are not simply content but delighted with our service ensures long term growth.
This is illustrated with 100% of our clients returning for repeat orders, we like to be reused just like our Branded Cups. We have a wealth of experience in business and management; complimented with sales, marketing and accountancy

027200860d48b9bbf2db0ef8aab314f7

Please note…

This post was written by the contributor. and  is  a PfU.K. Directory submission.

And the Pf U.K. Directory is…?

…a directory of UK-based groups, organisations businesses and individuals who are responding to the problems presented by the misuse of plastic. That does not mean anti-plastic necessarily… but certainly plastic-problem aware.

The DIRECTORY is to promote their fantastic work. Read more here…

Got a project?
It is very easy to get a project featured. Each contributor submits a short synopsis of their project, focussing on the plastic aware element and I post it. You can read the submission guidelines here.

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Scotland Our Green Journey Blog

by Posted in 3.6 Plastic Refusenik & Zero wasters Tagged

Hi, my name is Charlotte Todd

It is my mission to try and find ‘green’ alternatives for our family and others, for everyday living essentials. By green, I mean things which are biodegradable, recyclable, re-usable, sustainable products that have little or no air mileage, support the local (or failing that, national) economy and generally make the world a better place to live in. The overriding thing that I look for when choosing products to help life happen, is to what extent they are plastic free.

I am an individual who is blogging to help our family and others pursue green alternatives.
To combat plastic overuse, I choose products that are plastic free, blog about viable alternatives for others to read, and make it my mission in life through social media and everyday encounters to help others realise the problems that plastic has and is causing to our beautiful planet, and what can be done about it. I have created the ‘ultimate list’ on my blog for a quick-reference guide for others to see, without having to go trawling through internet forums/social media/ web pages to find such a handy reference guide.

I live in Scotland (United Kingdom) and have an amazing husband and two wonderful small people. Apart from being chief caregiver, activities coordinator, cook, cleaner and counsellor, I teach primary aged kids and have a keen interest in living in a way that has a positive impact on the environment.

Links – http://www.ourgreenjourney.uk/

D

A bit more…

This post was written by the contributor. It is a PfU.K. Directory submission.

And the Pf U.K. Directory is…?

…a directory of UK-based groups, organisations businesses and individuals who are responding to the problems presented by the misuse of plastic. That does not mean  anti-plastic necessarily but certainly plastic-problem aware.

The DIRECTORY is to promote their fantastic work. Read more here…

Got a project?
It is very easy to get a project featured. Each contributor submits a short synopsis of their project, focussing on the plastic aware element and I post it. You can read the submission guidelines here.

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Refill/Bulk/Zerowaste Stores

by Posted in 3.1 Disposables & Reusables, 3.1 Food & Drink, 3.2 Shops & Businesses Tagged , , 85 Comments

Bulk buy or refill stores are places you can buy all kinds of food like rice, suet, even soup mix – loose and unpackaged.
You take as much as you want/need from a larger container, weigh and pay.
You can usually use your own packaging.
The advantages for the #plasticfree shopper hardly need stating!
These are common in America and Australia, far less so in the U.K. But we do have some.
I have put together a list of stores that sell loose products, listed alphabetically by the location / place name.
If you know of others please add them, with as many details as possible, in the comments box below and I will incorperperate them.

Packaging

While these shops provide bags and they are almost always plastic ones. You will need to take your own plastic-free /reusable bags, tubs and bottles.

Tare

The weight of the container may make a difference at checkout. Some shops  subtract the tare weight but other don’t. The tare weight is the weight of the empty container.

Latest Loose Food Shop

from Twitter

Popped to the fantastically named @weighahead in Dunblane, a new #zerowaste shop near #Stirling. Highlights were finding packaging-free bar soap and stocking up on staples without any single-use plastic. We’ll be back! 

Jarfull Ltd

“Our shop all being well will be open sometime in the first couple of weeks of December. We will announce the confirmed date when we have done a little more decorating so please follow our social media pages to keep informed. “From their website

@jarfulluk

2 Bower Street, Harrogate, North Yorkshire, HG1 5BQ

Heard of one in Chapel Allerton. will be checking that out later.

A to Z of Refill Shops

A

Aberystwyth read more here

B

Barmouth Weigh & Save Travelled on to Barmouth on the Welsh coast. It was hot and sunny and the tourists were out in force. I don’t like it like that. I only stayed  for the excellent weigh and save shop (read more about them here…)  called the Weigh Out This sold (amongst other stuff), loose 

  • pasta
  • powdered milk
  • cystalised ginger
  • cocoa
  • roasted peanuts
  • dried fruit
  • sunflower seeds
  • bran flakes

Barnsley 

Market Got a loose lettuce pickled beetroot Cheese from the cheese stall shoes by Loake – British made 

Weigh To Save

Visited Weigh To Save and yes they did loose cocoa. This stall has just recently opened at 1 Metropollian Centre May Day Green, Barnsley S70 1SX Closes 4:30PM 01226 772239 “Unique Market Stall selling a range of dried products, choose your amount & weigh to save.Products include, Nuts, Dried Fruit, Cereals, Rice, flours, sugars, other baking products, washing powder, herbs and spices all at reasonable prices. Helping to save the planet with no unnecessary packaging, you can even bring your own reusable containers. see for yourself in Barnsley’s inside market, Unit 13 Market parade(old semi open market under multi storey car park).” Photos diary of my visit here 

Bath

KathrynH (https://secondhandtales.wordpress.com) had this to say “Just noticed that our Holland& Barrett store in Bath has some loose items (mostly nuts) but you can also buy, and then refill, bulk oils in glass jars. It’s quite a large store but wondered if other branches were doing the same?” Bath store – NewLeaf HealthFoods, 29 Shaftesbury Road, Bath, BA2 3LJ Happy to preweigh your container with what you are going to fill it with. Bulk bins of nuts, flour, sugar, grains, dried fruit and more. Loose herbs and spices. Ecover refills. 

Blandford Forum

thanks for the add. I thought zero-wasters living in Dorset might be interested to know about my wholefoods store, Cariad Wholefoods, in Blandford Forum. We’re still quite new but sell lots of wholefoods, herbs, spices and botanicals loose. We also have a refill station for Bio-D cleaning products, loose soaps, etc. Everything we sell is ethically sourced, cruelty free and suitable for vegans and we are happy to take bulk orders and work with food co-operatives. It’s a growing business and my personal dream to sell as much as possible unpackaged over the coming months. Hope that some of you will visit 🙂 https://www.facebook.com/cariadwholefoods/ 

Bridlington 

Weigh & Save 

Brighton 

HiSbe We’re an independent supermarket standing up for how it Should be. We help people cut down on plastic packaging by selling many items by weight, including fruit, veg, pasta, rice, sugar, lentils, cous cous, porridge oats and chocolate buttons! HiSbe Website Hello! My shop, Wastenot, is in Brighton and offers dried produce, loose organic fruit and veg, cleaning product and bathroom product refills as well as plastic free household and beauty items! My website is http://www.wasenotshop.com 

Bristol

Bristol has a few: Scoop away- http://www.scoopawayhealthfoods.co.uk/ and Wild Oats – http://woats.co.uk/. Also worth mentioning if you’re a member of Bristol university or affiliated in any way there’s an amazing food co-op which is worth checking out: https://www.facebook.com/HungryCaterpillarCoop/?fref=ts 

Brixam 

Weigh & Save 

Burley in Wharfedale “Waste Not The Grange, Station Road, Burley in Wharfedale, LS29 7ND, UK
do shampoo refills as well as lots of other stuff. more details here“

Buxton 18.1 Day Zero in Buxton. A great little family run refill shop. Very friendly and helpful in giving advice on how to make changes. Also responds to the customer to try and source plastic free products should there be a request for it.

C

Camarthen
“There’s the ‘green scoop’ in Camarthen
http://www.thegreenscoop.com
9 Hall Street, Carmarthen, SA31 1PH”

Cardiff
Cardiff- Ripple in Roath. Zero waste shop

Chichester
Chichester has Refilled Chichester at Drapers Yard, The Hornets. Drapers Yard also has other plastic free friendly shops including Zest for Taste which does oil and vinegar refills and Bear Boy Fresh with local organic veg and a milk refill station .

Cleethorpes
Spill the Beans St Peter’s Avenue #cleethorpes now have paper bags out as an alternative to plastic. If you’ve not been here PLEASE check if out! Loads of fab whole foods plus cereals Baking stuff and more #cleethorpes #discovernel #totallylocallyne

D

Dundee
Little Green Larder opened in Dundee today

E

Edinburgh

The new leaf co-op that offers a wide variety of stuff package free. Bulk stuff includes washing up liquid ontap, laundry liquid on tap, hair care, loads of spices, flour, müsli, beans & pulss, grains, rice, dred fruit, nuts, seeds, vinega, oil, soy sauce and much more. It’s an incredible place! They also have a very nice website where you can read all about them and their products. Here is a snippet “The New Leaf Co-op is collectively owned and managed by the people who work here, and we have chosen to put our principles right at the heart of our business.Our aim is 1simple: To offer affordable, healthy vegetarian wholefoods, with a focus on organic, locally sourced and fairtrade products, with as little packaging as possible. We carry more than 150 different lines of food and household products for customers to scoop and refill themselves, and our range is ever growing!” 

Gin!!!!

To be truly plastic free, you may have to set up a still in the back garden!  Unless you can get to one of these liquid delis. 

Demijohn offer a spirits, liquor and other drinks refill service in

Edinburgh 32 Victoria Street Edinburgh EH1 2JW 0131 225 4090 

Bloggers

Check out Scottish blogger Westywrites for Scottish based plastic freeness  

Emsworth 

in Hampshire  – Pantry Weigh. Thanks to Emma for this info “There’s a small shop called Pantry Weigh in Emsworth in Hampshire  https://www.yell.com/biz/pantry-weigh-emsworth-763392/ 

G

Glasgow

Many thanks to Lord Cut Grass for this Locavore in Glasgow is another one for your list. Grows and sells its own locally grown vegetables and can buy grains, rice, pasta, etc in your own container. 66 Nithsdale Road, Glasgow, G41 2AN http://glasgowlocavore.org/

Harvest Co-op is another place in Glasgow where you can bring your own containers to buy in bulk. 1143 Pollokshaws Road, Glasgow, G41 3YH http://www.harvestco-op.com/

Whole foods And there is always the Glasgow branch of Wholefoods. 124-134 Fenwick Rd, Giffnock, Glasgow G46 6XN, UK Do I sound excited? By a supermarket? Well yes I am. And the reason? This supermarket sells food loose and unpacked. I don’t just mean meat or vegetables (though that too) but nuts, spices and other dried commodities. The kind of stuff that usually comes swathed in plastic! They do a good range of rice, dried beans and pulses and more unusual stuff like blue popcorn, dried cherries and unroasted peanuts. Read more here See our Facebook Album here 

H & I

Horsham!

A surprise discovery on a day trip to Horsham! Town & Country Weigh is at 7 East Street, Horsham, West Sussex, RH12 1HH. It has bulk food bins for rice (long grain, short grain, arborio, basmati), dried pulses (e.g. black eyed beans, chickpeas, butter beans, red lentils), flours (including rye flour and potato flour), milk powder, and a wide variety of muesli ingredients. Thanks to Kake for the above write up.  Please, if anyone knows of any more, do add them to the list! Hull Heres a new one for the list Alans Naturally Health food/scoop and save shop 13 South Street Hull, East Riding of Yorkshire, HU1 3QG Huddersfield List of shops and markets here 

Hythe

in Kent I found another Loose Food shop called U Weigh in Hythe in Kent the address is 51 High Street Hythe, Kent, CT21 5AD Facebook address is https://www.facebook.com/uweigh What Are Refill Stores? Bulk buy or refill stores are places you can buy food loose.You take as much as you want/need from a larger container and you can usually use your own packaging.  

J&K

Kingsbridge

Save A Packet: http://www.saveapacket.org.uk
8 The Anchor Centre, Bridge Street, Kingsbridge, TQ7 1SB

L

London Shops

Earth Natural Foods,
200 Kentish Town Road, London, NW5 2AE
Open 8.30am – 7pm, Monday to Saturday, closed Sundays. Great review on Refuge For Daffodils

And another from Laurie Pym
I went to Earth Natural Foods on Tuesday. Bought some loose herbs and will be headed back there to get coffee & more soon! Still no taring, and it was quite difficult to use my own containers as I hadn’t read the A Refuge for Daffodils review in advance. Foolish me brought heavier containers. However, I used the available kraft paper bags, which I labelled with the seed and /kg price (as they request). Once bought, I put all bags in a Kilner jar to keep them fresh. When I got home I gently opened the bags, which I will reuse when we need more herbs. smile emoticon It is a lovely, LOVELY shop, which I will continue to patronise!

Bumblebee Natural Foods

To see what loose foods they do read this great review by Kake of Croydon

Food For All

A blog worth keeping an eye on this month is Junk Free January as they try to live without packaging for a month. I am sure lots of useful info will be sourced. Already another loose fill shop has been found. The following is taken from the blog….

“The hero of the day was Food for All, on Cazenove Road next to Stoke Newington railway station. The last shop on my search, I was pretty glum by the time I got here, but cheered up right away. This small independent shop has a friendly atmosphere, good ethics, good prices, and a huge range of loose goods – all the herbs, spices and teas you can think of and more, meusli, different kinds of rice, lentils, etc. “

The Big Table

http://www.thebigtable.net/ 45 Chatsworth Rd, London E5 0LH

Mother Earth
https://www.facebook.com/MotherEarthLondon
282 St Pauls Rd / 5 Albion Parade / 101 Newington Green Rd
London, United Kingdom

Planet Organic Muswell Hill
http://www.planetorganic.com/unpackaged-at-planet-organic/

111/117 Muswell Hill Road, Muswell Hill
London
N10 3HS

Whole Foods Market  

Whole Food Market – if we have to have supermarkets let them be like this….

Tooting

I just wanted to share with anyone else living in London (especially others in S / W London) that there are two sweet stalls/shops in Tooting Market- Get Juiced! (That sell vegan drinks, food and bulk products – they are also likely to go zero waste soon!) And Nuff Cosmetics that sells bulk cocoa butter , shea butter, natural unpackaged soaps etcetc. Really refreshing to find these two in this area!

Croydon – great write up by Kake who gives this shop a very good press

The rest

Leeds 

read a review here. 

Leicester 

Leicester now has a zero waste shop https://zerowasteleicester.co.uk/ 

Lincoln

Gaia Wholefoods in Lincoln Central Market Lincoln, Lincolnshire 07891 370197 Nicola, the proprietor sells whole food that she bags up but is willing to weigh out into your own containers if you give her enough notice. Thanks to Not Quite A Vegan for that 

M

Manchester Village Green Co-op

Prestwich Village Greens is a Community co-operative grocery in Prestwich with fresh, local, organic, affordable produce . For the plastic free amongst us it has some loose, self-service products in dispensers on the wall including Oats Muesli base Chia seeds Pumpkin seeds Hemp seeds Sunflower seeds Lentils Brown Rice I was pleased! Lentils and brown rice which have been off the menu until now. Yay! There was also paper wrapped butter and milk in glass bottles. Loose , organic veg including some unwrapped lettuce. Loose soaps, health care and Natura menstrual products. Plus some cocoa from Suma that I have to investigate. And really good fresh bread. They do Ecover refills you have to ask at the counter Well worth a visit. Check out the photo album on Facebook pastedGraphic_2.png

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OXFORD

Welcome to SESI
We are Oxford’s longest serving refill station of food products and household detergents.

SESI has its own range of laundry and household detergents which create no packaging waste from factory to consumer.  They are also effective cleaners, environmental and cheap.  We also offer refills of some well known products from Bio-D, Ecover and Faith in Nature.

The SESI food depot offers a growing range of fairtrade, organic and local foods.

We exist to help you minimise packaging waste and access the best products at a reasonable price.  We reduce packaging by encouraging customers to bring their bags, bottles and tubs for refill at our depot or at our farmers market stall.

All 250 refills and food/household products we hold as depot stock are available to order through this website.  You can download a catalogue of 5000 more! For tips on how to get the best out of this website go to ‘More About Ordering’.Please note we don’t take payment when you place an order – pay us on delivery or collection.  We accept cash, cheque or you can now pay by card.

P

Plymouth
Ethica: http://www.facebook.com/EthicaVeganStore/
155 Armada Way, Plymouth, PL1 1HY
Refills for detergent, shampoo, washing up liquid etc; soap bars, non-plastic toiletries, cleaning items
Blog post includes trip to Ethica https://ourrubbishblog.wordpress.com/2018/04/07/a-clean-break/

Peterborough
Backyard Food in Peterborough is an ethical shop looking to enhance the availability of local, organic, fairtrade, vegan, plastic-free products. It stocks food, household products and toiletries as refills. Recently re-launched, they plan to expand their current range of refills – https://www.facebook.com/backyardfoodpeterborough

Penzance

15B Causewayhead
Penzance
Cornwall TR18 2SN

One of the incredibly eccentric loose food outlets that can occasionally be found huddled under the idiosyncratic Weigh and Save umbrella. You can read more about them here…
This is a good one selling all manner of loose food stuffs. I stocked up on

  • raisins,
  • sunflower seeds
  • dried apricots
  • brown rice
  • COCOA!!!

Blog post about our visit to ‘Save A Packet’ and ‘Weigh Inn’ (Penzance) https://ourrubbishblog.wordpress.com/2018/05/03/the-incredible-bulk-stores/

R

Ramsbottom

Fulfilled: Plastic free shop

@FulfilledShop

Ramsbottom plastic free/zero waste food & household shop. now open! North West, England

S

Sheffield We are OPEN!!

Come along and check out our huge range of spices, refills of cleaning products, household items and plastic free wholefoods- we’re open until 6pm today! link here

Southampton

Jen ‏@choose_to_reuse   says Got some bulk dry food today from @RiceUpLtd – a #zerowaste haven! #choosetoreuse

Rice Up Wholefoods @RiceUpLtd We are an ethical (Vegan, GM Free, Eco/Organic friendly) mini supermarket. We are run as a Workers Coop. Open 10am-6.30pm (5.30pm Sat and closed Sunday)

T


Thatcham
Can you please add Thatcham Refillable to the list. We are in Thatcham near Newbury in Berkshire.
http://www.thatchamrefillable.co.uk
We sell refill household cleaning & personal care products daily and we hold a monthly market where we have stall holders selling dried food and other eco products from our shop.

Tiverton
Todmorden
Totnes

W
Plastic Free Places that start with the letter W can be found here
Including
Watford
Wimborne
Winscombe
Worcester

XYZ
York

A to Z

Frozen Food Loose
Pain Au Chocolat - home bake Pain Au Raisen - Home Bake Yorkshire Puds Fruits of the forest and other soft fruits Roast veg - peppers to potatoes Uncooked Vegetables ...
Read More
Lidles
Lidles  is a chain of budget supermarkets. It offers some plastic free surprises. (Click the links to see a review and other options). Take your own bags Lidl Stiftung & ...
Read More
Oil Vegetable Cooking Refill
Vegetable oil is difficult to source plastic free. Buy in glass and the metal caps will have a little plasticized disc or plastic liner on inside and maybe a plastic seal ...
Read More
Tea & Coffee Merchants
Here are some independent Tea & Coffe merchants. You may need to take your own bags Leeds The Teapot has coffee beans and leaf tea from all round the world. Really lovely ...
Read More
The Range – a chain of home & garden shops
Loose pet food, home wares and some loose sweets. Being committed to local shopping, I prefer to buy that way whenever possible. I would encourage you to do the same ...
Read More
U.K. All over Weigh and Save Shops
Long time ago when I was young we used to visit the Weigh & Save shop in the precinct down the road. In it were a number of  big bins ...
Read More

U.K. Wide

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Other Supermarkets & Chainstores
Sometimes supermarkets can surprise you – check out the plastic-free and reduced packaging products here.

Remember
While these shops provide bags and they are almost always plastic ones. You will need to take your own. 

Find A Milk Delivery Service With Glass Bottles

Here 

 

Online


This is an interesting option that allows you to buy basic foods on line plastic free.
You can even use your own produce bags. Read more
HERE

Ask A Local

A great source of info is the Plastic Is Rubbish FB support group. We have people everywhere who,are ready to help. Join up join in.

Please add any shops you know of in the comments below and I will incorporate them into the post.
Links to reviews particularly welcome.

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Bristol & Plastic A Lot Less

by Posted in 3.6 Plastic Refusenik & Zero wasters Tagged 6 Comments

Plastivist of the month is Michelle Cassar……

I started Being PALL – Plastic A Lot Less in November 2008. I had a life changing day, literally!

I´d always “recycled” but on this particular day I did my first beach clean on a deserted beach on the West Coast of Portugal where I was living. The beach was covered in plastic,  we removed as much as we could carry back up the steep cliff. We took it to the recycling bins, most I didn´t even know was plastic!  That evening I came across an article in The Surfer´s Path that simple said, “Every piece of plastic that has ever been made still exists and much of it is in our oceans.”  There was a you tube link to; A Tale of Entanglement. Which is a pretty graphic film of animals entangled in plastic. I was upset and looked around the camper… at all our plastics.  The next day I started refusing and researching.

Some people may doubt this statement. As some plastics have been burnt and there is still plenty on land, but no one can deny, our Oceans are choking in plastic.

I´m a photographer and I surf (when the conditions are small enough).  I was shooting surfschools. This meant I was spending a lot of time at the beaches, surfing or shooting.

With the Atlantic swell, it´s hard not to notice the ever-changing plastic washing up on the beach.  Especially when I was shooting, often even in small Summer swells, plastic washed up around my feet.  I was constantly reminded of the presence of plastic pollution, so I couldn´t help but do something positive about it.  Firstly be reducing my own plastic drastically and then helping other people reduce theirs.

Although I´m still coming up upon obstacles all the time, I try my best to over come the challenges as refusing plastics is a way of life for me now.  I don´t claim to be perfect, there´s always more anyone can do, but PALL-ing´s a good place to start.

I am   Photographer, Blogger, Educator on plastic pollution, Consultant to businesses, with regards to reducing their single use plastics.

I refuse single use, and many many other longer use plastics. After 3 years I´d calculated I alone had refused in the region of 10,000 SUP items, and that number has continued to grow over the years that have followed.

Over the six years I have also helped many other reduce theirs. Some things are simple but add up to incredible amounts. For example, a Surf School I worked with back in 2008 swopped single use bottled water for a water cooler and filter. Over the years they have gone on to refuse 12,000 SUP bottles and the plastic wrapping. They have also saved themselves over €1,500 and countless hours moving water bottles around.

http://being-pall.com/

https://www.facebook.com/beingpall

https://twitter.com/beingpall

A bit more…

This post was written by the contributor. It is a PfU.K. Directory submission.

And the Pf U.K. Directory is…?

…a directory of UK-based groups, organisations businesses and individuals who are responding to the problems presented by the misuse of plastic. That does not mean  anti-plastic necessarily but certainly plastic-problem aware.

The DIRECTORY is to promote their fantastic work. Read more here…

Got a project?
It is very easy to get a project featured. Each contributor submits a short synopsis of their project, focussing on the plastic aware element and I post it. You can read the submission guidelines here.

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Natalie Fee / City to Sea

by Posted in 3.6 campaigner, 3.6 Media, arts & education Tagged 1 Comment

So pleased to feature Natalie in the Plastic Free U.K. Directory.

Natalie Fee’s a TV presenter, author, songwriter and campaigner for cleaner seas. She founded City to Sea in Bristol to bring together the individuals and organisations working on plastic pollution to create a City-wide initiative for Bristol during it’s year as European Green Capital.
Plastic Challenge – launching City to Sea: a City-wide initiative to reduce the amount of single-use plastics used in the city, including: earbuds, plastic bottles and polystyrene take-away boxes.

City to Sea: a network of individuals and businesses in Bristol committed to lobbying for change in the way we manufacture and dispose of single-use plastics in the City.
Links –

More

This post was written by the contributor and is  a PfU.K. Directory submission.

The Pf U.K. Directory is…?

…a directory of UK-based groups, organisations businesses and individuals who are responding to the problems presented by the misuse of plastic. That does not mean anti-plastic necessarily but certainly plastic-problem aware.

The DIRECTORY is to promote their work not mine. Read more here…

Got a project?
It is very easy to get a project featured. Each contributor submits a short synopsis of their project, focussing on the plastic aware element and I post it. You can read the submission guidelines here.

Follow us on facebook here

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Index Plastic-free July

by Posted in 3.5 Plastic Free People, Projects & Campaigns, 3.6 Media, arts & education Tagged , , 24 Comments

Of course every month is plastic free for me but plastic free July is a time to make a bit of extra effort, promote projects, look at my bin and join with other people all over the world who are taking this time to rethink their relationship with plastic.

What is Plastic Free July

The aim is to cut your consumption of one use plastic, for one month – July. If that sounds a bit much bear in mind that definitions of one use plastic can vary. And how much you choose to cut is up to  you – read my take.
You can  take this opportunity to tackle one item. Maybe get your self a milkman, buy (or make) some produce bags for loose veges or get a refillable water bottle.
You don’t have to do it all at once!

But whatever and how much you choose to do, he plastic you loose is more important than the plastic you use!

A bit of history

Plastic Free July started in 2011. It is an initiative of the Western Metropolitan Regional Council (WMRC) in Perth, Western Australia and was developed by clever Earth Carers staff. In 2012 Plastic Free July expanded across Perth and in 2013 it went global. They have a great website and are all round good eggs.

My Plastic Free July

I cut all disposable plastics and just to remind you, that includes:
tins & cans:
tetrapaks:
glass jars with plastic/ plastic-lined lids:
Plastic lined cardboard:
Teabags:
Don’t know they had plastic in them? You can read all about sneaky plastics here
Plastic packed personal care and hygiene products. I will as ever be making my own. Sadly the ingredients came plastic wrapped but it can’t be avoided.
Any other plastic goods that I can’t think of right now.

Plastic I find myself using but Try not to
Booze. Itbis almost impossible to find plastic free booze to take out and there is usually at least one social occasion that requires a gift of alcohol.
If the morning after visiting said friends painkillers are required then they will be administered. As of course will any other necessary medicines.

Basically it’s what I do all year without the backsliding on the mayonnaise and wine front.

Keeping in Touch
Facebook groupf eatured

Join in at the Plastic Is Rubbish Support Group where people share plastic free tips.
And Twitter @plasticSrubbish

Hashtags
I encourage UK participants to use the  hashtag #pfjuk for British related posts. Mainly because it gets very dispiriting to hear of a fantastic bulk food store only to find it is based in Sydney.

 U.K. Participants

Every year UK based bloggers have joined in.
It’s really important to link up with U.K. based plastivists who will be sharing throughout the month. While some solutions like solid shampoo from Lush can be accessed UK wide,  many are local.

You can find a list of bloggers who have contributed  here.

Follow My Progress

2018  just starting

Past Years

I am proof that you can do this anywhere no matter the constraints.
2014 I did it while travelling  in a van. Here is how I did.
2015 I did it with a backpack  check out Plastic free Mongolia
2016  here
2017  On a desert island. read more  here 

More Resources & Info

Loads of plastic free products here… A to Z of plastic free products

And see all our past plastic free July posts here

N.B.

lines changes, products get removed. For more information why not ask the Plastic Is Rubbish FB group for updates. They are a great source of tidbits, personal experience and the latest news. Why not join them and share the plastic free love x

And before you go…

If you have found the #plasticfree information useful, please consider supporting us. It all goes to financing the project (read more here) or

Buy Me a Coffee at ko-fi.com

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