After a lot (and we mean A LOT) of thoughtful consideration, we’ve proudly set up the majority of our manufacturing operations in China. There’s a bit of a misconception about production in China, which we think is important to address. We work closely with our producers to ensure standards and processes we’re happy with, plus we found that China offered a lot of wonderful benefits:
- We can use paper wrappers and recycled cardboard boxes rather than plastic! We couldn’t find a local producer that would let us do this with varied designs for our wrappers.
- We have access to a large pool of local, raw materials– both post-consumer waste paper and bamboo (neither of which is readily available in the majority of our markets). By using China's local materials, we avoid importing from overseas.
- We can cut the cost of operations, passing on those savings to our customers.
If you'd like to learn more about how we responsibly produce in China, check out this article on our blog!
2023 Update
Expanding into new markets has allowed us to explore opportunities to move our production locally. We have been searching far and wide for partners that meet the high standards set for our manufacturing operations and who allow us to remain true to our vision of doing the most good for the planet and people.
As of 2023 we produce the UK's kitchen roll and tissues domestically.
We are currently working to identify further opportunities to expand local production capabilities without sacrificing sustainable business practices in our other markets - watch this space!
2024 Update
After a lot of digging, we chose to manufacture our Garbage and Poo Bags in Portugal. Our partner has a very unique, very snazzy, on-site recycling process which creates their own PCR (post-consumer-recycled) materials. Check it out here.
We chose our manufacturing partner due to their excellent sustainable manufacturing practices, their unique on-site recycling facility (meaning better quality control) and their ability to make a 100% PCR (post-consumer-recycled) bag that can be printed on. But it didn't hurt that they were also super nice.
How is all of this shipped?
For our Australian operations, we sea freight containers of stock into seven ports across the country that are closest to our warehouses, and distribute from there. We compared sea miles vs road miles, and found that road emissions are more intensive (like, 10x more. Woah!) than those used with sea freight. By shipping to several ports across the country we can keep the transport footprint roughly the same as if we had one manufacturing centre in Australia and shipped boxes across the country from there.
For our European operations, we sea freight containers of stock into the Netherlands, and distribute from there. Don’t worry, we’re not flying your toilet paper orders over from Australia! It's still early days of our international growth, and selling in these regions opens up a lot of new opportunities in terms of supply chain and partnering with more local producers. This is something we'll keep exploring as we grow our volumes and have better leverage on pricing.
For our United Kingdom operations, we sea freight containers of stock into England, and are distributing from there. While it is still early days of our international growth, selling in the UK has opened up a lot of new opportunities in terms of supply chain and partnering with more local producers. Our Forest Friendly Paper Towels and Tissues are manufactured domestically and we are currently exploring opportunities to move more of our production locally.
For our North American operations, we sea freight containers of stock into both the East and West coast of the United States, and are distributing from there! While it is still early days of our international growth, selling in the US has opened up a lot of new opportunities in terms of supply chain and partnering with more local producers. Our 100% Recycled Toilet Paper and Forest Friendly Paper Towels are manufactured domestically - we are currently exploring opportunities to move more of our production locally.
Did you know?
All of our shipping (from the factory all the way to you) is now completely carbon neutral.
All of these factors ensure we are building a sustainable business model that delivers quality and environmentally responsible products at competitive prices. This allows us to focus on our greater mission: donating to non-profit partners working in clear water and sanitation.