THE BIG SOAP SWITCH
We’ve all heard of the ‘Three R’s of recycling’, which aims to provide a clear and simple way to prioritise and manage household waste, particularly plastic. For a long time, people have been urged to think of ways to reduce the amount of waste they produce, reuse what they already have and recycle where possible. Though all are important, the strategy places higher importance on reduction, reusing is the next best thing and recycling, whilst still important, is the last resort. (NOTE: the three R’s of recycling have been somewhat been extended to five or even seven these days, but more on that another time).
Lentils and Lather is all about helping people to reduce the amount of plastic waste they generate - we don’t sell any products that use plastic packaging, which means that our customers are able to have better control over the amount of plastic they put in the bin.
However, we do use plastic in our operations, particularly household liquids and food products, where a viable alternative for plastic has yet to hit the mainstream. All of our plastic waste has all been sent back to our suppliers to recycle, however, there is a better way.
Enter Miniml.
Based in just over the hills Keighley, West Yorkshire, the team that runs Miniml have a background in manufacturing eco-friendly cleaning products for boats, bikes and motorhomes. With increasing awareness about the damage that plastic is having on the planet and a growth in “zero waste” shops around the country, they realised that they could create and supply products to shops like ours who have an agenda to help people reduce plastic waste.
Miniml’s zero waste solution is a perfect fit for Lentils and Lather. They deliver their cleaning liquids in 20 litre jerry cans, we then fit a tap and pop it on our shelves so that you can bring your own bottles to fill up and reuse at home. When your bottles are empty, return to the shop to refill and reuse your bottle. Once the big jerry cans on our shelves are empty, the Miniml team will collect and take them back to their factory to clean, fill up and reuse.
It’s this closed loop or circular supply chain that we’ve been searching for. Even though the old method was having an impact on plastic waste (recycling the big containers and allowing you to fill up and reuse your own bottles uses less plastic overall than treating home bottles as disposable and buying new each time you’re empty), it means that we can take a massive chunk out of the amount of plastic waste our business generates. This new approach means that we can fully harness the benefits that plastic offers - reusing the durable and lightweight materials instead of treating them as disposable.
But what about the products - are they as good as the suppliers we’ve been stocking until now? Miniml offer a competing product for more or less all of the main household liquids we’ve been selling this far. Their background in supplying cleaning products to outdoor enthusiasts means that they’re well attuned to thinking about the environment, so they don’t use chemicals that are harmful to the planet.
They opt for natural and organic ingredients to help their products foam, cleanse, moisturise and stabilise. All products are vegan and cruelty free, they do not contain palm oil, Sodium Laureth Sulfate (SLS) or Sodium Lauryl Sulfate (SLES). We’ve had really good feedback about Miniml’s products so far and are super happy with their approach and ethics.
Lentils and Lather stocks the following Miniml products and hopefully there are more in the pipeline:
Body wash / bubble bath
Fabric conditioner
Floor cleaner
Hand soap
Multi-surface cleaner
Non-biological laundry liquid
Shampoo
Toilet cleaner
Washing up liquid
White vinegar
Although the switch to Miniml is the biggest change we’ve made to date, we’re constantly looking for ways to remove plastic from our supply chain. For example, we’ve found a supplier of plastic free pasta (which is also UK made and organic) and qinoia (also British and organic) and promise to always keep this at the very core of what we do.