Feb 06, 2023

Carbon Footprint: Bamboo vs Recycled

It's tricky trying to cut through the numbers we it comes to carbon footprint.

Some bamboo brands claim they create 30% fewer than recycled toilet paper - because of less water and electricity used - but an independent assessment showed bamboo toilet roll create 34% emissions by shipping from China.

There is also a lot made of how quickly bamboo grows, when actually bamboo's ability to store carbon was called into question in a 2016 report.

There is no doubt that bamboo is a much better option than toilet paper made from virgin pulp.

But we also feel there's a reason that the only brands that got an A in the Natural Resource Defence Council's Issue With Tissue report were recycled. We outlined all the additional reasons we felt recycled was a better option in another blog post - from biodiversity to circular economy.

Clearly not all recycled paper is created equal.

Look for brands that are recycled from 100% post-consumer waste, like Serious.

Look for brands that adhere to the FSC certification, also like Serious.

And look for brands that don't use chlorine bleach, this is embarrassing, again, like Serious.

When it comes to reducing our carbon footprint, small actions can make a big impact. One of the simplest and most straightforward ways to live more sustainably is by choosing eco-friendly products, like as toilet paper.

Switch to serious

Seriously Sustainable Toilet Roll

UK Made, recycled, plastic free & every box sequesters 11% of your annual carbon footprint.

shop toilet roll

5.900KG+

ocean plastic
removed

1,000,000+

trees
planted

17 years+

employment
created

FAQs

Serious Tissues are manufactured in the Midlands. By producing in the UK we’re also able to reduce the carbon footprint of our toilet paper. Our loo roll is made from 100% recycled paper and without any unnecessary chemicals (dyes, perfumes, etc.)

Serious Tissues are made from recycled paper (also known as post consumer waste) - no trees are harmed in the making of this product. We use recycled paper - from newspapers, cereal boxes, etc. - instead of bamboo because the carbon footprint is smaller, and we don’t have to ship the bamboo from China. We’re produced in the UK and the source material is also from within the UK.

You can find more information on our tree planting dashboard here. Our current tree planting partner globally is Veritree.

In the past Serious has partnered with different associations, helping run tree planting projects all around the world including Eden Reforestation Projects and The Tree Council. Our partners work with local communities, providing work for those who need it, often in areas affected by extreme poverty. We have planted trees in the UK, Nepal, Indonesia, Madagascar, Mozambique, Kenya, Ethiopia, Haiti & Central America.

The health of our oceans is vital to the health of our
planet. For the past 200 years, oceans have absorbed up to 40% of CO2 produced
by human activity but early signs are showing the rise of microplastics in our
seas is disrupting their capacity to act as a natural carbon sink. Plastic is entering our seas at an alarming rate and if the current trend continues, they could contain more plastic than fish by 2050.

That’s why we’re working to cut off the flow of plastic into
the ocean.

For every pack of Serious laundry detergent or bar
soaps we sell, we recover 1kg of ocean-bound plastic. That’s the equivalent of fifty 500ml plastic bottles or 500 crisp packets.

Ocean-bound plastic is defined as the collection of
plastic waste in a 100km radius from the coastline (as defined in the Verra Plastic Standards) that would otherwise not have been collected and would most
likely end up in the ocean. Essentially it is an intervention to divert this plastic safely away from oceans before it has a chance to leak into it.

Recovery is currently managed by our partner, Repurpose
Global, and more information will be available soon on our ‘Plastics’ page.

All of the packaging is plastic free and 100% recyclable.

They are made in Sweden.

Because the laundry strips product is 95% lighter than traditional laundry detergents and far smaller, it means the carbon footprint from shipping is lower than other bulkier products.

We are looking to find a UK supplier soon, but we didn’t want to waste time getting the product to market so we could start making an impact by helping people reduce their plastic consumption and recovering plastic from nature.