GrEEN SCENE

bag that

degradable bag
In a few months, only the bag wIll be extInct read the colourful eye-catchIng bags from the one stores. the store has now Introduced Its new degradable plastIc bags to paInt Its servIces green.

by C a sse y O li v e i r a

or many, a shopping bag is just another use and discard plastic accessory that holds your purchases together, every time you go shopping. But for THE One, the same can prove to be a great tool in carving a green niche. At par with its mission to become more

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february 2011

environmentally responsible, the store has now introduced 100% degradable plastic bags to its customers. Thomas Lundgren, CEO (Creative Emotional Originator) of THE One speaks more about the initiative to Qatar Today. How can bags make a difference? After months of research we believed that 100% degradable plastic bags are the best answer to help keep the planet green. If customers invest in our eco-chic FEED bags (made of jute and organic cotton) they will not only help save the planet, but also help in ending child hunger. Thats the difference shopping bags can make! says Lundgren. After an initial trial at THE Ones Jumeirah Theatre, these bags were officially

launched in all UAE stores in March 2010. Soon the concept crossed over other markets Jordan, Bahrain, Kuwait and Qatar (in both its Landmark and Villaggio Mall Theatres). The mechanism behind this trendy degradable bag lies in an additive known as d2w, which is included at the time of manufacture, and causes the bags to start disintegrating six months after production, eventually vanishing into thin air ultimately leaving H2O (water), CO2 (carbon-di-oxide) and biomass in negligible quantities. Customers reactions When the home fashion brand decided to discontinue their regular plastic bags as well as their distinctive red paper bags, to

78 Qatar today

GrEEN SCENE

bag it!
A shopper using A degrAdAble bAg

More about the degradable concept during The mAnufAcTuring process, The d2w AddiTive is included in The bAsic polymer resin. d2w breAks The moleculAr chAins so ThAT AT The end of iTs predeTermined service life The plAsTic sTArTs degrAding in The presence of oxygen by A process of oxidATion, which is AccelerATed by lighT, heAT And sTress, buT noT dependAnT on iT. finAlly, The degrAdATion process is biologicAlly concluded by micro-orgAnisms. d2w plAsTic does noT need A biologicAlly AcTive environmenT To sTArT degrAding This will hAppen even if The plAsTic is lefT in The open Air! for This reAson Among mAny, d2w conTrolled-life plAsTic is superior To composT-Able which requires The plAsTic To be in A biologicAlly AcTive environmenT before The degrAdATion process cAn proceed.

turning green with shopping...

The new 100% degrAdAble bAg by The one

switch over to degradable bags, they faced some resistance from the customers. Lundgren feels people still consider paper bags more eco-friendly than other bags. Dismissing this misconception, he explains, Not only does paper cost the world trees, but making a paper bag uses four times more energy and causes five times more water pollution vs. a plastic bag. It also takes seven times the number of trucks to deliver the same number of paper bags vs. plastic bags, causing seven times more air pollution and road congestion. Lundgren also believes that putting a price on the bags is necessary to give them a value. Anything you get for free has no value. We hope that charging QR1 for a medium bag and QR2 for a large bag will encourage our customers to buy as few as possible and reuse them until they disintegrate. After all,

what is the price of a plastic-free planet? Green alternatives THE One offers its shoppers two other alternatives you can either reuse their boxes by taking home your purchases in them, free of charge, or invest in one of their eco-chic fabric bags. Funds raised from the sale of FEED Bags go towards helping end child hunger through the United Nations School Feeding Programme. Our latest arrival is the FEED 2 Kenya Bag, which has been handcrafted by women and hearing impaired Kenyans. Every purchase will not only support these artisans but will also feed two Kenyan children for one year, thanks to a $100(QR364) donation to the United Nations World Food Programmes School Feeding operations in Kenya, says Lundgren.

While we still have a long way to go in limiting our companys environmental impact, we encourage green initiatives and therefore provide our customers with various eco-friendly alternatives, from bedding, towelling, cookware and wood products to recycled glass, iron and tyre ranges in addition to soy wax candles. The brand has also started its Good Wood furniture range. Made from Verification of Legal Origin certified wood, this collection features a host of dining and coffee tables, entertainment units, sideboards, mirrors and chests of drawers that have all been created using wood from managed forests or plantations and not from illegal logging. THE One has continued with its commitments towards green initiatives, and with the introduction of degradable bags, it has added another feather to its green cap