First-ever ‘carbon-positive’ packaging made from cork

Spotted: The British natural-cosmetic company Lush has developed what may be the first-ever “carbon-positive” packaging. The new packaging is made from cork instead of plastic.

Lush recently received its first order of 6,000 cork pots and aims to purchase an additional half a million more in the next year. Lush has also established ethical standards during the transportation process, bringing the pots to the UK by boat to reduce its carbon footprint. Moreover, to obtain the cork, Lush is only supporting forests that are part of regeneration programmes.

Not only is cork biodegradable, but it also comes from bark, which is harvested every ten years and does not require cutting down trees during the process. Additionally, to produce cork, more trees have to be planted, meaning more C02 has to be absorbed from the atmosphere. By encouraging the planting of trees, Lush’s packaging aims to go beyond carbon-neutral to be “carbon-positive.”

Until now, the company’s packaging has mainly consisted of reusable aluminum tins and pots made from recycled plastic. According to Lush, 9 kg of CO2 is released for every kg of aluminium created, compared to just over one kg of CO2 for every cork pot. In addition to having a low carbon footprint, cork is anti-bacterial, water-resistant, strong and can even be composted. 

1st August 2019

Email: wecare@lush.co.uk

Website: uk.lush.com

Contact: uk.lush.com/contact

Source: New feed 1