Let’s reduce the environmental impact of ecommerce fulfilment in Plastic Free July and beyond

Plastic Free July is a global movement that helps millions of people be part of the solution to plastic pollution – so we can live in a cleaner and more beautiful world and keep it that way for generations to come.

A 2021 Impact Report from the Plastic Free Foundation, which runs Plastic Free July, shows that an estimated 140 million people took part in Plastic Free July 2021 globally. These figures illustrate how consumers around the world are becoming increasingly concerned about the waste created by what they buy.

Rising consumer demand for products with a green supply chain

More and more shoppers are checking out the eco-credentials of a brand before they purchase their products – not just in July but all year round.

Pressure is growing on ecommerce retailers to give careful consideration to how green their ecommerce supply chain is. That includes manufacturing, packaging, storage, and eco-friendly fulfilment and logistics.

Typically, for every one bin full of waste generated, 70 bins full were generated upstream in creating it. It’s up to ecommerce brands and their fulfilment partners to do as much as we can to reduce the impact of ecommerce on the environment. Not just because customers expect it – but because it’s the right thing to do.

Fullers Fulfilment is certified to ISO 14001: Environmental Management & EcoVadis: Sustainability Rating

Fullers Fulfilment is a multichannel fulfilment service in The Midlands, Hampshire and Berkshire, we store, pick, pack and dispatch thousands of orders every year for ecommerce clients from a diverse range of industries.

We see it as our duty to do so with consideration for the planet. Fullers Fulfilment is certified to ISO 14001, the world's most recognised environmental management system. We are also proud to be certified by EcoVadis an internationally renowned and trusted business sustainability rating provider.

Supporting The United Nations Sustainable Development Goals

Every month, we donate to B1G1 – and initiative run by Business for Good. This allows us to give to a variety of projects are aligned with 17 Sustainable Development Goals set by The United Nations.

Many of these projects will help positive climate action, encourage responsible consumption and production, and use clean energy.

Greener fulfilment solutions

Many ecommerce businesses come to us with a mission to improve the sustainability of their supply chain – but they don’t quite know how to achieve it.

Our team of green champions is here to advise them on greener fulfilment options and suggest ways that they can reduce their environmental impact by working with Fullers Fulfilment, such as:

• Storing their goods in our energy-efficient warehouses
• Utilising ecommerce system integration to manage stock levels in a way that minimises waste
• Sourcing and switching to recyclable and compostable packaging
• Ordering packaging in in bulk where possible, to reduce the carbon footprint
• Using our worldwide network of trusted eco-conscious couriers

Supporting ecommerce clients with a circular mission

As well as being our Fulfilment Services Analyst, Green queen Lilla Horvath is one of Fullers’ champions of sustainability. She explains how she encourages and empowers our clients to reduce their environmental impact:

“When I source packaging, I always get quotes for the sustainable materials first, including finding budget-friendly options – and never virgin plastics! I always try and shift our clients away from oil-based plastic packaging and towards 100% recyclable choices."

“We are always researching ways to make fulfilment kinder to the earth. In an ideal world, we would live in a circular economy, and nothing would go to waste, everything would be repurposed over and over again.”

Sustainable brands in the Fullers Fulfilment client portfolio

Our client portfolio includes a number of online retailers to which sustainability is core to their brand. Seventy + Mochi makes limited collections of jeans and other clothing with a sharp focus on recycling and the reduction of fabric wastage.

They avoid any single use materials where possible and use no virgin plastic in any of their operations, including the fulfilment we handle for them. All garments are stored in a biodegradable plastic bag and shipped out in paper bag.

Kair is another Fullers client that has gone 100% plastic free with their products and fulfilment. They make laundry detergent in recyclable and reusable glass bottles. It’s vegan, cruelty-free, kind to the planet and looks after clothes in a way that helps them to last longer.

For British-made knitwear brand Cara & the Sky, we store and ship garments in bags made of sugar cane, rather than oil. We work with many other sustainable ecommerce brands too.

Fulfilment for B Corp Certified companies

B Corp is a certification showing that a business meets high standards of verified performance, accountability, and transparency on factors ranging from employee benefits and charitable giving, to supply chain practices and input materials.

One of the actions a company must complete to achieve certification is to demonstrate high social and environmental performance by achieving a B Impact Assessment score of 80 or above and passing a risk review.

Yarrah is a B Corp-certified pet food brand that partners with Fullers Fulfilment. All orders are packed in 100% recyclable packaging.

One in three consumers claim to have stopped purchasing certain brands or products because of sustainability concerns. Fullers Fulfilment can provide green fulfilment solutions for ecommerce that are good for your business and better for the planet. Contact our team of green champions today to find out how we can help you.