FAQs - Paper Products
From napkins to centrefeed products, Astral Hygiene supply a broad range of paper products to trade.
What kind of paper products do you provide?
We are associated with many types and can obtain several different brands. The paper sector at the moment is quite tumultuous with BREXIT raging on and with the price of paper pulp for our recycled products going up and down.
We are a recognised Tork distributor and can supply every Tork Toilet Roll and Hand Towel Dispenser, we stock a wide range of Tork Products and as a main distributor can offer competitive prices. Our warehouses also have various Centre Feeds, but as a rule of thumb we generally stock some Tork Centre Feed, but also a more economical brand which is always 2 ply anda minimum of 145m. We also stock 3 types of domestic toilet toll (for households!), coreless toilet rolls, smart one (Tork), and three ranges of jumbo toilet roll.
We also have a wide access to toilet rolls, so if we don’t stock it, we can certainly get it!
What sustainable paper products do you provide?
Sustainability and the environment are so important to us all, so we do stock sustainable products across the most of our range.
Most of our products are certified Eco Label, which is a voluntary scheme, which means that producers, importers and retailers can choose to apply for the label for their products. ... It continues with manufacturing and packaging, distribution, use and finally the “end of life” stage, when the product is disposed of or recycled.
This is a voluntary scheme which guarantees the carbon foot of the product is low, that each product has not travelled too far to reach the end user, it means that the production is efficient, the packaging is minimal, and that the way it is broken down is thought about and has been considered.
Our domestic toilet roll is sustainable, it carries and Ecolabel, our centre feed is sustainable, it carries an Eco Label, every Tork product we stock is sustainable they carry EcoLabels.
So how does cutting down trees = a sustainable product – that makes no sense?
With all of our sustainable products they must come from sustainable forests, so forests that are managed and ones that have tree replenishment. All of our sustainable products are pure virgin pulp (not recycled), which encourages the replanting of trees, and some of our suppliers even go as far as to replace one tree with three – now that is sustainability at its best.
What is the difference between recycled, pure and recyclable?
This is a really important question and one that is really misunderstood. Recycled is good right, well yes and no.
Using recycled paper means making a paper pulp that is effectively full of glue to glue it together, where as virgin pulp requires little or no glue. So where does this paper go once it has been used, well toilet paper in this country goes down the loo – so you are throwing glue down the loo, the toxins, and some of that matter will end up in our oceans which is not what we want. This will adversely effect marine life and will litter our shores – so not good. What I’m saying is that recycled paper is great, but no necessarily for toilet paper.
Lets move on to Pure then, pure paper is made from trees that have never been anything before, so the pulp is not full of glue. The pure paper that we buy and sell at Astral Hygiene is EcoLabel so is from sustainable forests, so it is an environmentally friendly option.
Recyclable really just means anything that can be reused – in essence, so any form of paper is recyclable, but not necessarily compostable or biodegradable.
What is the difference between compostable and biodegradable?
Compostable means that a product is capable of disintegrating into natural elements in a compost environment, leaving no toxicity in the soil. This typically must occur in about 90 days. Some companies advertise their products as merely biodegradable. This is not necessarily a good thing since nearly everything will biodegrade in 10,000 years!
What are alternatives to Paper Toilet Tissue?
At Astral we are always looking to better our supply chain, and are always looking for a more sustainable product. We want to look after our planet too, and provide a safe and plentiful home for our children. We are currently looking into Bamboo Toilet roll, but we don’t just believe all of the hype and the sales pitch we are initially given. We need to do due diligence on any new line that we bring in and we need to make sure the supply is solid, the product is hygienic, and that is doesn’t have too high a carbon foot print to ensure it is a worth while product for us to bring in. The jury remains out…..
Anything else you’d like to know, drop us a note at sales@astralhygiene.co.uk.
