Green Gift Cards - An Alternative to Plastic Cards

20 Apr 2021 • 3 minute read

As consumers, we often purchase items without thinking about how they got to the supermarket shelf. Whether it’s food, electronics or gift cards, all items have a journey before they end up on the supermarket shelves.

However, a growing number of consumers think about the other end of the journey. With 26 million tonnes of waste entering UK landfills each year, there is a lot of media attention and growing public concern about the amount of plastic in this waste and how much of it is recycled. Alarmingly, only 9% of all plastic waste is recycled globally, meaning that there is a huge impact on our planet when we discard plastic.

Swapping your membership, loyalty, or gift cards to eco-friendly options, may not seem like a large contribution towards tackling the plastic crisis. However, many businesses are making small changes to their processes and packaging, to eliminate global plastic waste. We have highlighted four benefits of swapping PVC cards to plastic-free cards.

Reduce the demand for plastic production

Choosing plastic-free cards can help reduce the issues surrounding the production of plastic. 

Manufacturing plastic is a massive process, which consists of using non-renewable fossil fuels, to obtain the materials needed to form plastic. This operation can cause a huge impact on global warming. A study taken by Vital Signs showed that 4% of the world’s petroleum is used to create plastic. This figure may not sound a lot, but the production of plastic has been increasing year-on-year. 

In 2015, the production of plastic reached a staggering 381 million tonnes, since this figure has been released the issues surrounding plastic have been increasing, alongside the production of it. A report by The Guardian stated that plastic production is set to increase by 40% between 2017-2027. An alarming figure considering the plastic issues our planet currently faces.

Decrease the risk to yourself

It’s no secret that plastic causes harm to our planet. Whether it’s to our wildlife, oceans or ourselves, this man-made item seems to affect our planet in many ways. Due to the increase in concerns and issues surrounding plastics, there have been multiple environmentally friendly initiatives introduced throughout various industries, to try and reverse the damage that is being caused.

One issue that many of us don’t consider is the amount of plastic we consume. On average, each of us ingests an equivalent of one credit card per-week. Studies show that microplastics are consumed through various food sources, water supplies and the outside air. It’s currently unclear how consuming this amount of plastic affects the human body. However, early tests have revealed that consuming a large number of microplastics can cause biological stress.

Help the planet recover

Making the switch from plastic cards to eco cards comes with a range of benefits. One of them is that due to the cards being biodegradable, they will not cause any harm to the planet, once they’ve been discarded. 

A report by Plastic Oceans stated that 50% of all plastic that is produced, is for a single-use purpose. Meaning that it’s most likely to be discarded shortly after using it. 

Unfortunately, gift cards fall into this category, meaning that this waste adds to the huge amount of plastic that is dumped into landfills each year. This waste often ends up in our rivers and oceans, which has an impact on global marine life. Scientists at The Ocean Clean Up, predict that by 2030 as much as 53Mt of plastic will be entering our oceans and rivers each year. As a result, this would see an increase in marine life fatalities and further harm to our ecosystems.

It’s just as durable 

One question you may be asking yourself, is can plastic-free cards match up to the PVC ones in the market? The quick answer is yes in nearly every instance. All the cards that are produced by Green Gift Cards are made to last. Our cards are thicker than the PVC equivalent, are really robust, and are made from Iggesund best in class Invercote paperboard, so you don’t have to worry about compromising when making the switch to plastic-free cards.

On average, our green gift cards can withstand over 400 swipes with no drop off in performance of the data being read or the card’s structural integrity, that’s why our whole card range is made from sustainable Invercote.

Ready to make the switch?

Whether you require membership, loyalty or gift cards, we have you covered. Our paperboard card range, including our biodegradable gift card packaging, is both hardwearing and high quality. Our card range is sustainably sourced, from a forest where more trees are planted than harvested every year, meaning your purchase can be guilt free and harmless to the environment when your cards have been discarded. The process as a whole helps fight climate change and the plastic crisis, we all face. 

If you’re interested in going plastic-free with your gift cards, get in touch with us today or give us a call on 01794 725 454 and we can help you make the switch. 

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