The world recently came together at COP26 in Glasgow to try and agree on a way forward for the planet. And while it’s possible to debate how successful or not this gathering was for me as a pet owner, I do know there is a lot I can do to be eco-friendly when buying pet products; every little helps.
￡3 Billion A Year!
Firstly, approximately 60% of all UK households have a pet! Dogs are present in 33% of households, followed by cats in 27%. Two per cent own a rabbit. Each year owners spend in total around ￡3 billion on their pets! Couple that with the fact that the UK spends approximately ￡100 billion (2019) on ethical products. Pet product manufacturers have enormous incentives, therefore, to give eco-friendly pet owners what they want.
Unique Pet Products
One of the best-known eco-friendly pet product companies is Beco. Established in 2009, this UK company makes unique pet products using the most sustainable processes to minimise environmental impact. Check out their website at becopets.com. Ethical Pets is a complete pet shop selling eco-friendly pet products and there, you can find the Bamboo Groom range of brushes and combs.
Check them out here. Pet-food packaging is very Eco-UNfriendly. Approximately 95% of all pet-food packaging is non-reusable and local authorities decide how they process plastics marked as recyclable. Wet food tins are highly recyclable, but pouches are a gigantic waste of the planet’s resources.
A few pet food manufacturers are trying to lead the way in solving this problem. Eden Holistic Pet Foods (edenpetfoods.com) has introduced a dry food for puppies. Called Puppy Cuisine, it comes in 100% recyclable packaging. Paleo Ridge (paleoridge.co.uk) and Henley Raw Dog and Cat Foods (henleyrawdogfood.com) package their raw pet food in cardboard – so much easier to recycle!
Responsible Recycling
Some pet companies have taken the COP26 initiative very seriously. Check out pet-food company Scrumbles (scrumbles.co.uk). Remember also to watch those air miles! Some very popular products are not from the UK or even the EU and travel thousands of miles to you and your pet! Avoid at all costs.
Awesome and Rawsome do try hard to be as eco-friendly as possible. Question your pet shop on their ethics and make sure they align with your own beliefs.
Thank you for reading ‘Be Eco-Friendly When Buying for Your Pet’. For more pet-related content, click here.
