files/pdfs/sustainable development/2014/2014 disposable recyclable
BIC® products are light and long-lasting
DISPOSABLE? RECYCLABLE?
Overcoming the sustainable/disposable contradiction BIC® products are very often stigmatized as “disposable.” Although not all of them are refillable, neither are they used just once. On the contrary, most of them offer long-lasting performance: up to 2 km of writing for a pen; 3,000 flames produced for a lighter; and from 7 to 10 shaves for a shaver. In addition, most of them are designed with no superfluous parts or features, using a minimum of raw materials, and BIC makes an ongoing effort to reduce their environmental impact in daily use. Each of the various products on the market, whether refillable or not, meets a specific consumer need. BIC® products are recognized for their very good quality-price-performance ratio, their practicality and the fact that they are available in numerous points of sale all over the world.
Why aren’t BIC® products recyclable? Recycling is justifiable for products at end of life when they offer significant potential in both weight and volume like automobiles and glass. Products such as pens, lighters and shavers do not meet these criteria: they are small and lightweight, which is why no companies collect and recycle them at this time. Yet, BIC has launched in Europe a program for the collection and recycling of used writing instruments, with Terracycle (more information on www.terracycle.com )
Excerpt from BIC Sustainable Development Report, 2013, page 21
DISPOSABLE? RECYCLABLE?
Overcoming the sustainable/disposable contradiction BIC® products are very often stigmatized as “disposable.” Although not all of them are refillable, neither are they used just once. On the contrary, most of them offer long-lasting performance: up to 2 km of writing for a pen; 3,000 flames produced for a lighter; and from 7 to 10 shaves for a shaver. In addition, most of them are designed with no superfluous parts or features, using a minimum of raw materials, and BIC makes an ongoing effort to reduce their environmental impact in daily use. Each of the various products on the market, whether refillable or not, meets a specific consumer need. BIC® products are recognized for their very good quality-price-performance ratio, their practicality and the fact that they are available in numerous points of sale all over the world.
Why aren’t BIC® products recyclable? Recycling is justifiable for products at end of life when they offer significant potential in both weight and volume like automobiles and glass. Products such as pens, lighters and shavers do not meet these criteria: they are small and lightweight, which is why no companies collect and recycle them at this time. Yet, BIC has launched in Europe a program for the collection and recycling of used writing instruments, with Terracycle (more information on www.terracycle.com )
Excerpt from BIC Sustainable Development Report, 2013, page 21
