ZURU celebrates Earth Day by announcing a 360-degree sustainability program for its top-selling ZURU Bunch O Balloons brand. A sweeping transition from surprise plastic polybags to sustainably sourced paper surprise bags, and much more.
ZURU’s immersive Bunch O Balloons program will prevent an estimated 800 tons of single-use plastic from entering the supply chain each year and enable consumers to recycle all elements of their product, no matter the local regulations. Beginning this August, the company will start to produce all Bunch O Balloons plastic stems and caps from 100% fully certified and traceable post-consumer-recycled plastic; material that has been in the marketplace, recycled, and then sourced by ZURU to use in its manufacturing.
“The Bunch O Balloons program showcases our all-in commitment to a full-circle approach to sustainability,” said Anna Mowbray, ZURU’s Chief Operating Officer. “We are changing to 100% recycled plastic in our manufacturing, essentially giving it a new life, rather than seeing it end up in landfills and the ocean, as well as providing consumers easy opportunities to recycle after use.”
ZURU’s partnership with renowned recycling company TerraCycle which launched last September will continue, enabling consumers to ship at no cost Bunch O Balloons parts, balloon pieces, and foil bag packaging. The program is currently offered in the United States, Canada, United Kingdom, Australia, and New Zealand.
The product’s balloons remain made of natural latex rubber and biodegrade, which further delivers the 360-degree environmental measures: from consumption of recycled plastic to recycling and repurposing of used materials into new items.
ZURU is taking further steps across its brands to eliminate waste further. By the end of the year, the company is committed to transitioning an estimated 13 million plastic polybags to sustainably sourced paper surprise bags. The move, where applicable to maintain product quality, will take place across its Rainbocorns, 5 Surprise, Smashers, and the new Itty Bitty Prettys brands.
Additionally, ZURU is taking steps to evolve product packaging. The Sparkle Girlz brand will move towards integrating more plastic blister-free packaging across the range, which already boasts an innovative Doll Cone packaging that has won sustainability awards for its plastic-free design. Tiny Town ride-ons are distinctively designed to stack during shipping and at retail. The stackable, no-packaging required product lowers the carbon footprint by over 75%.
ZURU is working to better label and therefore help consumers identify plastics that can be recycled. By June 2021 they will be looking to adopt all their molds to have all plastic pieces in their toys labeled with the correct plastic grade and recycling logo, where relevant, to help increase the rate of recycling.
“Earth Day is every day for our amazing team at ZURU,” Mowbray continued. “We challenge ourselves to rethink, reduce, and recycle in all aspects of our business. From day-to-day operations, to leading the change in our industry, and encouraging our customers to do their part in making a long-lasting impact.”
Mowbray’s commitment to sustainability is well-known. Bestowed with the 2020 Wonder Woman in Manufacturing award at the Women in Toys, Licensing & Entertainment (WIT) annual gala earlier this year, Mowbray has long-focused on automation, vertical integration, and executing ZURU’s industry-leading sustainability program; in short, rethinking how ZURU designs new and existing products, reducing the use of plastics and their products carbon footprint, and offering consumers easy avenues to recycle, all while still delivering a top-quality experience.