Charlotte, North Carolina—To reduce virgin plastic consumption during the fulfillment processes, Printful is gradually switching to 90%–100% post-consumer recycled (PCR) plastic packaging for all apparel products fulfilled in its North American facilities. This is part of Printful’s commitment to providing a more sustainable way of production through print-on-demand.
Although sustainability challenges in the fashion industry do not have a quick fix, Printful recognizes that more improvements in this area can be made as the company continuously evolves to offer best-in-class quality. Even though the amount of PCR content varies between locations worldwide, Printful started using packaging made partially from PCR plastic in May 2021 as an alternative to regular plastic bags. Now, starting with its North American facilities, Printful is taking more significant steps in the company’s sustainability mission by implementing packaging with higher PCR content—up to 90–100%.
PCR plastic packaging is made from items that consumers use and recycle every day, like plastic bottles, food containers, and shopping bags. Recycled plastic protects products just as well as—and looks almost identical to—first-hand plastic. Producing items with recycled materials saves virgin resources and requires less energy, minimizing the environmental impact plastic has on the planet. That is why Printful aims to gradually set a new company standard for PCR content in packaging across all of its in-house facilities worldwide—a minimum of 70% for all components of packaging.
“Printful’s vision is to continue supporting ecommerce brands while also taking steps to reduce waste. That is why we encourage consumers and businesses to adopt the made-to-order business model which limits overproduction. In addition, some practical steps in our sustainability journey include introducing sustainable packaging materials, reducing the amount of packaging altogether, as well as offering eco-friendly products,” adds Printful’s CSR project manager Alise Zindiga.
About Printful
Printful is an on-demand printing and fulfillment company that helps people turn their ideas into brands and products. The company fulfills and ships custom clothing, accessories, and home & living items for online businesses. Printful is the first unicorn company (valued at over $1B) with Latvian roots and in 2021 the company hit a revenue milestone of $289M. Since its founding in 2013, Printful’s been trusted to deliver 52M+ items and has scaled to a team of 1,600+ people across ten in-house fulfillment centers around the world.
This article was originally published in the Printful Newsroom