It's Plastic Free July - makes you think...

We live in an age where the utilization of disposable, single-use items is out of control, and the need to recycle, reduce and reuse has never been so important.

At Van Hage Great Amwell, we take sustainability very seriously and are continuously looking for ways to make improvements in all our departments and procedures. We have an excellent team of Buyers who aim to source sustainable products wherever possible and have many systems in place to monitor waste and how best to reduce and recycle. In just one month (June 2021) we recycled over 75% (over 18 tonnes) of our waste resulting in a carbon footprint of less than 25%. This was enough to save 231 trees from being cut down.

Our main aim at Van Hage is to have zero waste and we have set up a range of recycling facilities on site for staff to dispose of items in a responsible way. Our facilities offer recycling for Cardboard, Plastic Wrap, Electricals, Glass, Food, Green Waste, Rigid Plastics, Scrap Metal, Wood, Batteries, Printer Toner Cartridges, Paper, Clothing and Cooking Oil.

Water is such a precious resource, and a garden centre needs quite a lot of it! We have a rainwater reservoir on site which we use to water our plants and any surplus rainwater is recycled back into the drainage system.
We also recycle WEEE (goods covered by the Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment Regulations) products in store when a new product has been purchased.

For more information about our commitment to sustainability please visit our website.

Shopping

At Van Hage, we aim to offer our customers a range of recycled, recyclable and sustainable products wherever possible, and we are proud of our wide range of products, from Garden furniture to Jigsaw Puzzles (and so much more!) to choose from.

Here are a few of our top picks:

Bramblecrest is one of our main Garden Furniture brands and is a ‘zero-to-landfill’ company where all their waste streams are disposed of in the most responsible and sustainable manner. Waste streams are either confidentially destroyed (shredded and sent off for recycling), recycled into new products or sent off to a waste-to-energy plant to generate electricity – nothing is sent to landfill. The Bramblecrest Chatsworth Modular Sofa Corner Set with Ceramic Table includes soft-touch, graphite coloured Eco cushions, made from recycled plastic bottles.

LifestyleGarden are another brand we are proud to stock and have a policy that boasts the creation of high quality, long-lasting and environmentally responsible products. LifestyleGarden only use FSC™ certified Teak and recycled aluminium in their products and a prime example of this is the Solana Rectangle Dining Sets for 6 or 8, or the Lifestyle Garden Solana 50Cmsq Multi Coffee Set.

Or how about the DuraOcean Nassau 95cm Square Dining Set for 4? The chair is 100% made with recycled plastics originating from marine debris and mainly consists of fishing nets that have been safely removed from the Ocean. All of the wood is exclusively grown on FSC™ certified regenerated plantations. The set is 100% recyclable.

A fire bowl is a wonderful aspect to your garden and a great way to keep warm on those cooler evenings. The Kadai FireBowl is the perfect way to toast your marshmallows and will also give you peace of mind that it has been produced with environmentally friendly materials; these beautiful fire bowls are handmade from recycled oil drums.

A Bird Bath also adds another element to your garden and is essential to help many different types of wildlife and the Wildlife World Shenstone Theatre Bird Bath is made of a mixture of recycled 2nd life plastics and clay.

Other useful sustainable garden items you might like to consider are our range of Tildenet Gardenware pots and saucers made from recycled bamboo which are 100% recyclable and are available in two colours – terracotta or sage green. Let’s not forget about our Elho Pot range too, made from 100% recycled plastic and our range of plant feeds called Performance Organics from Miracle-Grow with their bottles made from 100% recycled plastics.

For all that tidying up in the garden, how about the Garland Jumbo Patio Pan & Brush which has been manufactured from recycled polypropylene?

 

It’s not just garden products that focus on sustainability, we have ranges for the kitchen too that you can find in our Cookshop. Have you heard of the ‘If You Care’ Eco range from Eddingtons? These products are produced with a view to reducing the amount of waste in our everyday lives, especially when it comes to the kitchen.

The products range from food wrap, firelighters, foil, coffee filters, sandwich bags – the list goes on. They are made from materials such as chlorine-free paper products, FSC™ certified wood and natural oils and wax.


 

Finally – to keep the children entertained just in time for the summer holidays, how about our ‘Green Toys’ made from 100% recycled plastics? This range are a safer alternative as they contain no BPA, PVC or phthalates.

If we all take just a few simple steps to reduce waste, to recycle and reuse in our everyday lives, then we will be heading in the right direction.

It’s our World, our children’s future – let’s take care of it.

For more advice on how to recycle visit:

https://www.recyclenow.com/
https://www.gov.uk/recycling-collections