2# Weekly Round-up
It’s week 2 of my exploration into sustainable business and this week I am delving into the stories of: COAT, Butternut Box, Nuud, Petit Pli, Notpla, Divine Chocolate and Oxwash.
COAT
COAT, produces sustainable paint with a B-Corp certification to boot!
They have peel and stick samples, so you can be 100% sure about which colour you want to go for - 95% less waste than tester pots!
They source their products locally.
They are committed to helping UK homelessness charities.
The paint is water based, sustainably sourced and recyclable.
“We’re about simplicity, and making it easy to create a stylish home in a conscious way. We’ve done the leg work to bring you tasteful muted colours and the highest-quality paint - hand-finished to your order, and delivered the very next day. “
Butternut Box
Butternut Box are “putting the food back in dog food” with their nutritionally complete food, controlled portion sizes (did you know that 65% of dogs in the UK are overweight!), human quality ingredients (they even go as far as having HUMANS and dogs taste test the food!) and personalised. As a proud/ obsessed sister to two doggies (Sherlock and Paddington) I know just how important catering to your dog's individual needs are!
It all began when 2010 when founder Dave rescued a farty Staffie, who they aptly named Rudie!
Dave searched for natural dog foods that may stop Rudie’s farting, but they just couldn't find one… so they set about doing it themselves. Then they went to market, and quit their day jobs … and Butternut Box was born.
They now donate one meal to a pooch in need every time someone signs up for a subscription, they also support lots of charities that get dogs off the streets and into the arms of loving owners.
Better still, Butternut Box is among the 1,100 B-Corp’s in the UK!
Nuud
Nuud plastic free gum is based on the simple idea that we should ‘chew plants, not plastic’ - ultimately it's better for us and for the planet. It's really refreshing too!
Their gum is sugar-free but gets sweetened up with Xylitol, which is derived from the bark of birch and beech trees.
By using only plant-based ingredients their product is biodegradable, if you have a composer you can pop it in there, and it will break down as easily as an apple would!
Nuud clearly lays out exactly what is in their gum, so you know what you’re putting in your mouth, unlike other brands that are full of unpronounceable ingredients. They are also Oral Health Foundation certified, the ONLY plastic-free gum company to have this, that's something to smile about!
Normal chewing gum is full of microplastics, their founder describes it as one of the most ‘blatant pollutants in our day-to-day lives.’ I was shocked to learn that many brands are able to hide the nasty ingredients in gum under the term ‘gum base’, and there are no laws to stop them from doing it. This is why it's so important to make a conscious effort to spend your money wisely on products that don't cost the planet.
Following an appearance on Dragons Den, where founder Kier Carnie, was told his product was ‘uninvestable’ by the Dragons, Nuud was invested in by the creators of Candy Kittens, Jamie Liang and Edward Williams. “I’m over the moon to have partnered with Ed and Jamie - and a Kitten is better than a Dragon any day! This partnership will accelerate the growth of Nuud and our ability to solve the plastic gum problem for good.” – Keir
Petit Pli
I first discovered Petit Pli when Rachel Kelly pointed them out to me when I visited Sustainable Ventures, where they are based, back in October … and they really are pure genius! “Petit Pli aims to clothe the future of humanity, we're just starting with the next generation.”
Back in 2017, an aeronautical engineer by day Ryan Mario Yasin began Petit Pli, a company making waves in the textile industry with their diverse range of garments for all sizes and body shapes! They were inspired by space and their garments have to “pass the Mars test: your clothing has to be versatile, comfortable, essential details only and extremely tough.”
Ryan shortly after his nephew was born, and he discovered that the clothes he brought for Viggo were too small y the time they arrived. So he began designing clothes that would grow with Viggo - reducing CO2 emissions and water. They are now making dynamic clothes for adults too. Extending the life span of clothes by 9 months as a minimum equals a reduction of CO2 emission and water waste by 20-30%.
Their garments made off patented growth fabric that is recyclable, non-toxic, soft, breathable and stain repellent are manufactured responsibly in Portugal at a factory that runs off renewables. Astonishingly their clothes grow up to seven sizes - so they grow with you - which doesn’t cost you or the earth very much! Their packaging can even be turned into a toy for your little ones - to be honest I used to find the cardboard boxes much more exciting than actual presents when I was younger! They also offer a free repair service.
“PETIT PLI intelligently applies engineering to the textile and fashion industry to create a unique and compelling invention that addresses a global problem”
James Dyson
Notpla
I first learned about Notpla when David Johnson and Kirstie Pickering told me about them last year… they have since won the Earthshot Prize and were presented with it by Prince William himself!
Their founders Rodrigo Garcia Gonzalez and Pierre Paslier met at Imperial College London, and they worked together to develop their first invention Ooho, after they graduated they posted a video of their edible bubble on social media that went viral …
Notpla is revolutionising packaging with their plastic alternative seaweed products - did you know that seaweed grows up to a mind-bogglingly 1 m every day, it also doesn't need fresh water or fertiliser? Seaweed may lead some of the way out of this crisis as it captures carbon 20x faster than trees, Notpla also biodegrades within 4-6 weeks in your own home!
In 2019, Notpla (Not plastic) was started, and they have grown beyond what they thought was possible. They have partnered with Lucozade to replace their bottles and worked with the food delivery service Just Eat to replace their food contains with eco ones made of seaweed.
They have been recognised by investors and raised a whopping £850,000 in 3 days in 2017 and since they have fundraised £10 M Series A investment round, so they can propel their diversification and make an even bigger mark on the industry.
“At Notpla we believe that “Nature knows best”, and we only use naturally occurring materials that have had millions of years to adapt with the rest of the environment. Our new films and seaweed paper are great examples of this principle and are the most sustainable solution in their categories. We’re excited to see traction in the food service industry and are looking forward to moving into the cosmetics and fashion markets very soon.”
Pierre Paslier, co-founder and co-CEO of Notpla
Divine Chocolate
I first came across Divine at Sustainable Ventures when I walked past their office. Divine are the only Fairtrade company in the UK that are co-owned by 100,000 farmers as part of their mission to end exploitation in the cocoa industry - ensuring that from bean to bar sustainability and ethics are at the heart of their business. “The chocolate industry is valued at approximately $100 billion worldwide. But, the cocoa farmers who grow the essential ingredient that makes chocolate typically only earn about $1 per day.”
There are two farmers from Ghana who have a director position on the board (40% representation) so they can voice their concerns, hopes and ideas for the future of Divine. They are also concentrating on empowering women by addressing the Sustainable Development Goals set out by the UN - both the head of the farm they work with in Ghana and the founder of Divine are female. Using their profits they are able to pump some of it into mentoring and educating women in Ghana.
They are a B-Corp, Vegan, Fair Trade and certified by the Soil Association. They refuse to use palm oil or GM ingredients. They are also committed to using recyclable materials in their packaging to reduce waste.
Through their commitment to reducing ‘chocolate miles’ they don't use air freight and make an effort to reduce emissions where possible.
Great work Divine, your chocolate also tastes flipping amazing!
Oxwash
Founded by former NASA scientist Kyle Grant and Tom de Wilton the B-Corp Oxwash are taking on the challenge of changing the laundry game.
Oxwash collect your laundry from your doorstep if you live in London, Oxford or Cambridge on electric bikes, and then they load it into their low-impact washing machines.
They recycle the water they use (saving 32L per 8 kg wash) in the washing machines and stop 95% of plastic microfibres (100 M of the pesky fibres are filtered out every day) from entering the seas - also through their considered efforts saved 6,700 kg of CO2 saved by each bike each year.
Their machines use “next gen ozone technology” at low temperatures (which is better for the environment and expands the clothes' life span) and eco-friendly formulations to hygienically clean clothes.
They work with airbnb, deliveroo, Peloton and the University of Oxford to pioneer the eco-washing movement
