there is a neverending search for the perfect solution
It is what we are all searching for, isn’t it? That one thing that fixes ALL of the issues. That undoes all the wrong we have done before.
Problem is, it doesn’t exist. Yet.
Sure, plenty hold out that their solution is a silver bullet, or at least silver plated. But is it really? You sure it is not just polished tin?
We have, for decades, been led on a journey that is recycling. You would think that recycling was the domain of staunch environmentalists and other well-meaning organisations. Would it surprise you to know that it that neat little set of three arrows in a circle (Mobius Loop) was created by a student in the 1970’s? And has been adopted by large corporates not necessarily to indicate recyclability, but to identify the type of plastic?
PVC is often dubbed “The Poison Plastic,” creating a trail of pollution from the moment it is manufactured to the second it hits the landfill. As global awareness shifts, the rationale for moving away from this material has become undeniable.
there is plastic and there is plastic
There are seven (7) primary types of plastic in circulation today. Each has their own strengths, but they all have distinct weaknesses – their impact on the environment. Some are worse than others, but it is all in degrees.
Most plastics are recyclable. Good news.
Most plastics aren’t recycled. Bad news.
Some “truths”:
- Very little plastic is recycled. Most of the plastics returned for “recycling” is actually “downcycled” to another product. Most plastics can only be downcycled once or twice before the polymers break down. Then is it landfill bound.
- One different type of plastic in a batch will result in a contamination and the entire batch sent to landfill.
- Recycling or downcycling plastics can use more energy than the virgin version.
- Enzymatic breakdown of plastics is theoretically possible but can only be achieved in highly specific environments with very specific microbes and enzymes. This is a long way from being commercialised but is exciting.
- Words like “eco”, “recyclable”, “green(er)” or “sustainable” when referring to a synthetic plastic (other than biopolymers) is just marketing.
- Limited or no transparency is because they are hiding something that they don’t want you to know about or focus on.
so, what is the silver bullet?
I don’t know, but with the advent of biopolymers, we are getting closer. I would go as far as calling the bullet Fine Silver (99.9% pure silver) plated. Are there further advances to be found in this space? Very much so.
At the rate of development, it is not out of the realms that this bullet could be Coin or Jewellery Silver (80-90% pure silver) in the foreseeable future with Sterling (92.5% pure silver), Britannia (95.8% pure silver) and (solid) Fine Silver yet to aim for.
Is it worth having a silver-plated bullet? It is a giant step in the right direction.
Biond is certainly that. A clear step into the realms of semi-precious metals for that bullet.
polished tin with a hint of silver
Veritas Print Media is more than a supplier; we are a partner in the industry’s evolution. By championing Biond biopolymers, we are helping the world move past the PVC era and into a future where print media is as renewable as the ideas it promotes.