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May 1, 2019

 

At MightyNest, we love to do our homework, so once we fully committed to replacing plastic, the possibilities got exciting. Over the past six months, we tested many different types of sustainable packaging and are pleased to report that the winners passed our tests with flying colors. What’s not to love about high-quality recyclable mailers and boxes that perform as well or better than poly bags? We’re convinced that this doable change satisfies our requirements for eco-friendly performance and delivers a better experience to our members. 

 

Sustainable shipping is now a reality. Nearly all monthly MightyFix shipments leave our warehouse in recyclable mailers and boxes made from at least 75% post-consumer waste paper.  These sturdy containers protect items during shipping and come from renewable resources. Plus, they deliver a satisfying unboxing moment that’s a breath of fresh air!

 

We’re proud to choose more renewable materials that match our mission to support healthy green living and give our members what they want. For the past four years, we’ve kept the price of the MightyFix constant while absorbing incremental cost increases. However, these new materials do cost more to ship and pack, so we’ve raised the price of the MightyFix by $1. We debated long and hard about this price increase, but in the end, we decided it was important to make the Fix a better experience for all of us. Now we can deliver the great Fix value in a more sustainable way.

 

Yes, we’re on a mission to deliver healthy green discoveries at great values, but we’ve got to keep it real. It’s crucial to strike the right balance between eco-friendly materials and increased shipping and handling costs. In the beginning, the magic combination of sustainable packaging and low prices stayed elusively out of reach. The recycled poly bags we chose then are a better-than-usual choice because they include 30% post-consumer waste, they’re convenient to pack, and require less fuel to ship (because of their light weight). But these plastic bags aren’t easy to recycle (most curbside recyclers don’t accept them). We wanted to do even better. 

 

Now, thanks to you, we’ve grown! This means that we can negotiate better prices on more sustainable packaging materials and work more closely with our partners to reduce their plastic packaging too. Some have already switched from plastic bags to paper and cardboard materials.

Despite our big step forward, it’s true that some of our products will still arrive in plastic packaging. That’s because—for now—that’s how the manufacturer ships them to our warehouse. 

 

Reducing plastic packaging is only part of the story. At MightyNest, we are always looking for ways to reduce waste and increase recycling. Here are some of the actions we take every day.

 

We avoid waste and keep shipping costs lower by using containers that are sized to match their contents.  What’s the point of shipping a small item in a big box, anyway? Flat non-breakable items usually get shipped in a flat mailer made of recycled paper. Single items get shipped in a box that’s sized to protect the item without wasted space.  For shipments with multiple items, we use a variety of boxes in different sizes and always pack as efficiently as possible to minimize our use of materials.

 

We receive a lot of boxes at our warehouse, and many of them are in great shape and ready to be reused. Our members often receive MightyNest shipments in boxes that originally came from Stasher, Frontier, Duralex, etc. We love our partners—and their boxes!

 

Almost all of the packing materials that come into our warehouse are reused for our outgoing shipments. This includes packing paper, cardboard, and biodegradable “peanuts” (see below).

 

Not all of our products need extra padding, but we almost always choose recycled paper for those that need protection. For example, we use corrugated wrapping paper instead of conventional bubble wrap. For breakable glass items, we often reuse biodegradable “packing peanuts” that provide superior cushioning (unlike conventional synthetic packing peanuts, these actually dissolve in water—try it, it’s fun!).

 

Not everything can be reused, of course. But we do our best to recycle as much as possible. We take the time to peel off plastic tape from cardboard before we throw boxes into the recycle bin. This helps avoids problems during the recycling process because plastic tape can jam the cardboard shredding machines (and most recycling companies won’t accept mixed materials, anyway.)

 

Most warehouses store inventory in plastic bins. At MightyNest, everything we sell is stored in cardboard bins. They last almost as long as a plastic bin, but they can be recycled at the end of their life instead of going into a landfill.

All of the inks used on our MightyFix mailers and inserts are eco-friendly alternatives made without toxic chemicals. For example, our printers use gentle water-based inks to screenprint the MightyFix paper mailers, and waste-free UV-based inks to print our inserts.  

 

Only two fragile Fixes currently ship in bubble mailers made of non-recyclable plastic and paper. We’re looking into replacing these with plastic bubble mailers that can be recycled at stores that accept grocery bags for recycling.

We will continue to work closely with all of our product partners in the hope of entirely eliminating plastic and excess packaging from our shipments.

 

We will continue to explore options for biodegradable paper tape.  

 

We already use renewable paper stickers, but are also investigating stickers and shipping labels with eco-friendly backings.

 

Your choices matter too! Whether you’re shipping a birthday gift or sending back an ill-fitting pair of pants, you can take simple steps to help reduce mailing waste.

Ship efficiently by choosing boxes and bags that best fit your item(s). This reduces packing materials and also supports more fuel-efficient shipping (because more packages can fit in the same space in trucks and containers).

Take the time to remove plastic tape before adding boxes to the recycle bin. 

 

Save time and money by reusing boxes instead of buying new ones at the shipping store.

Wrapping your packages securely without plastic film helps keep plastic out of landfills.  For more information, visit plasticfilmrecycling.com.

 

Bubble mailers seem convenient and protective but aren’t very eco-friendly. 100% plastic bubble mailers can be recycled with your grocery bags, but “paper” bubble mailers can’t be recycled at all (it’s impossible to fully separate the paper exterior from the plastic lining). Nearly all get thrown away eventually. It’s simply better to use renewable paper mailers. If you need more padding, try using shredded corrugated paper.

 

Together we can make a bigger impact with our efforts to make the world a more sustainable place. How do you make your mail mighty? We’d love to hear how you are reusing shipping materials and reducing plastic. Share your stories with us on Facebook and Instagram.

The MightyNest Team