The results of our ground-breaking nappy recycling trial in Bristol are out!
We’re pleased to tell you that 6.3 tonnes of waste was saved from landfill. That’s the equivalent of 31,500 used nappies. Holy poops!
The first of its kind in England, the Pura NappiCycle trial, supported in an awareness drive by ASDA, launched in July 2022, and saw nappies and other absorbent hygiene product waste collected from families and two nurseries in Bristol then taken to South Wales for processing.
This nappy waste avoided landfill and incineration and was instead turned into useful materials such as engineered fibre for road surfaces, notice boards, panelling, insulation under laminate flooring.
There were 13 fortnightly curb side collections over 6 months. And we’ve made sure that all miles have been carbon offset of course.
Happy parents
Feedback from the 50 participants and two nurseries following the trial has been very positive, with 100% rating the service highly and recommending the service to others.
One said: “Knowing that our waste is being recycled is fantastic as we have had such guilt about using nappies with the current climate crisis. We are so thankful that we have been able to take part and hope it continues.”
Our founder Guy Fennell commented: “Every year, three billion disposable nappies are thrown into landfill in the UK, each one taking hundreds of years to break down.
Pura is on a mission to change that. The success of this phase of the trial is just the start – we want to bring this nappy recycling service to households throughout the UK. This requires investment and government backing which as a business we will continue to lobby for, for the sake of our children’s futures.”
Continuing the good work
Following the trial, Pura and NappiCycle have now agreed a 5 year exclusive extension to their partnership agreement.
Excitingly, the goal of this agreement is to deliver more, larger scale nappy recycling trials and develop the underlying technology, as well as to continue to drive Government and Local Authorities to deliver a UK-wide service available to all absorbent hygiene product users.
Rob Poyer founder of NappiCycle said: “Pura's investment in our partnership has been fundamental to the continuing development of nappy recycling technology.
“I’m delighted to have signed a 5-year agreement with Pura, continuing our existing partnership. I look forward to working with the team to create even more awareness of the benefits of nappy recycling.”
Watch this space for news of our next trial!
