We’re beyond excited to announce that we've teamed up with Precious Plastic Margaret River to launch our new 2020 We Are Feel Good Inc. Bottle Recycling Program.
In Australia, sunscreen is classified as a cosmetic or therapeutic good. As all of our products are SPF 50+, we fall into the therapeutic category. This means all our packaging must be either glass, aluminum or food-grade/virgin plastic. We cannot use recycled plastics as these can hold contaminants, even after recycling.
To date, we haven't found a suitable alternative to the food-grade plastic packaging we currently use, however, our packaging is recyclable once used.
If my We Are Feel Good Inc. bottles are recyclable, why do I need to join the recycling program?
Well, the big issue is that the majority of recyclable products don’t actually get recycled, even when they are put into a recycling bin.
In order for recyclable plastics to be recycled, lids need to be separated from the bottles and washed before they go into your curbside bin. Even if you do this, another person may not and when their bottle comes into contact with yours at the rubbish depot, it may contaminate yours and thus the entire batch will be sent-off to landfill! Not many of us realise this when we pop our recyclables into our curbside bins each week.
Did you know:
Did you know:- An average of 300 million tonnes of plastic are used globally each year. 50% of which are used for single-use purposes.
- More than 8 million tonnes of plastic are dumped into our oceans each year.
- The average Australian uses 130kg of plastic each year, and only 9% is recycled due to the many types of plastics used in the average household and the misinformation on recycling.
- There are seven types of household plastics. Please refer to our Recycling Guide below to see what can be recycled from your current curbside recycling bin.
- All We Are Feel Good Inc. products are made from numbers 2, 4 and 5, which both have the ability to be reused up to 7 times if recycled properly.
- *As of June 2021, we have over 100 We Are Feel Good Inc. collection points across the country, and the list keeps growing. Find a collection point near you by searching your postcode here!
- Approximately 3 We Are Feel Good Inc. bottles are required to make a single comb, so start saving your bottles!
So we've teamed up with the Australian Precious Plastic community to take matters into our own hands.
Introducing, Narelle and Stijn, from Precious Plastic Margaret River (PPMR) who are working with a worldwide ‘Precious Plastic Community’ to turn plastic waste into new reusable plastic items.
PPMR is a volunteer-run, not-for-profit organisation. Did we mention they are a volunteer-run, not-for-profit organisation? How awesome is that!
In particular, they source and recycle plastics lids (no bigger than your palm) which are sometimes hard to re-purpose. Plastic lids are too small for council recycling machines, meaning they fall through the cracks and are therefore sent to landfill. Lids sent or dropped to Precious Plastic are washed, sorted by plastic-type (label #1-7), then sorted again by colour before being melted and moulded into new up-cycled plastic items.
Why?
With the PP team, our Bottle Recycling Program will take your returned sunscreen bottles, tubes and lids and turn them into new reusable plastic items like this comb!
Note: If you’re going to deliver your plastics to a PP Recycling facility, please remember to wash and separate your bottles and lids first.
How do I get involved?
1. Collect your empty We Are Feel Good Inc. packaging.
2. Download your FREE shipping label and drop off at your local post office.
3. When we receive your return, you'll receive a 10% discount code to use on your next order with us.
4. We'll take your empty bottles to Precious Plastic Margaret River where they'll be shredded and made into new reusable plastic items!
Help us #spreadthefeelgood by collecting bottles from your friends and family too!
~ Share a photo of your parcel & bottles by tagging @wearefeelgoodinc and #feelgoodrecycling ~
We believe it is our responsibility to take care of our planet and recycle responsibly. We cannot solve global warming, but we can help educate and change a person’s habit. We would like to thank those who make an effort to support our program. Every little action a person does to protect the earth accumulates as a community, so let’s do our bit together!
*Updated 01/11/22