What is ocean-bound plastic?
Ocean-bound plastic is a certified plastic material exclusively cleaned up in areas that are the source of ocean plastic pollution. By using ocean-bound plastic, we help prevent ocean plastic and support better waste management where it’s needed most.
Our ocean-bound plastic is collected within 50km of the shore in areas with insufficient waste management in South East Asia – where up to 80% of ocean plastic comes from. It’s collected and recycled by local organisations certified to handle ocean-bound plastic.
By collecting and recycling this plastic, we stop it ever reaching the ocean and support better waste systems in communities that need our help preventing plastic pollution.
How it’s done
Collected
Waste is cleaned up from regions that have been identified as the source ocean pollution by certified collection organisations.
Sorted & Cleaned
The waste is sorted. The useful material is prepared for recycling. Material that isn’t recyclable is carefully disposed to stop it from ever returning to the environment.
Recycled
Certified recycling organisations process the plastic into a valuable material.
Upcycled
We buy the material and start working. It’s moulded into our design, packed in sustainable packaging and sent to our amazing customers.
Loved & Reused
Our products are designed to be loved, reused, repaired and eventually recycled into new products.
Supported
The collectors, sorters and recyclers (and us!) are all rewarded for cleaning up the planet and preventing ocean pollution, meaning they’ll do more of it!
Funding cleanups
As well as using ocean-bound plastic in our products, we fund additional cleanups of ocean-bound plastic. 2 kilograms of plastic for every product shipped.
Why ocean-bound plastic?
We think ocean-bound plastic provides the best balance of sustainability, environmental and social impact, and viability. It’s a practical first step toward a new plastics economy that doesn’t pollute the planet.
Unfortunately some brands have conflated ocean-bound plastic with ocean plastic. It is not. Ocean-bound plastic is not from the ocean. It is intercepted before it reaches the ocean.
Plastic pollution is an unequal problem.
It affects developing countries much more than wealthy countries. By buying certified ocean-bound plastic from these places, we support the removal of plastic from the environment where it has the biggest impact, and we support the development of better waste systems that stop the problem at the source.
Why not ‘ocean plastic’?
Around 80% of ocean plastic originates on land, and 81% of ocean plastic comes from just one region (Source)
If your bathroom was flooding you wouldn’t start mopping before you’d turned off the tap. We think of ocean plastic the same way. We believe we will have more impact by using ocean-bound material collected at the source of ocean plastic.
In addition, most ocean plastic is so degraded that it is not usable as a material. You should be very sceptical of any product claiming to be made from ‘ocean plastic’
Why not glass?
An earlier version of Light Soy was made from glass. However, we have stopped using glass because recycled plastic has more impact on reducing plastic pollution. It uses less energy to make, is lighter, more durable, easier to recycle and requires less packaging.
What % is ocean-bound plastic?
At launch, the shade of Light Soy is made with a minimum of 75% certified ocean-bound plastic, with the remainder of the product, including the red cap, being made from post-industrial recycled or virgin sources. We use these other plastics where required by regulation or where a viable social-impact plastic is not available.
We are working towards making all parts from 100% ocean-bound material as we get more experience working with the material and the supply chain becomes more reliable.
Recycling is only part of the solution
We view recycling as the very last step in a process of reinventing our economy to be more sustainable and ‘circular’. We must reduce our footprint, rethink & redesign everything to prevent waste, reuse and repair everything we can, and only then look to recycling as a solution.
Our vision is to redesign waste into things that spark joy and last – so they never become waste again, and inspire more people to adopt a circular, minimal impact mindset.
Find out more about how you can make a difference when eating sushi.
