2020 is the year we enter a more serious era of environmental responsibility. You may have noticed how plastic bags and plastic straws are being phased out of commercial businesses. Bringing your own reusable tote bag to the grocery store may not seem like a big deal, but it significantly reduces the amount of plastic waste that goes back into the landfill every day. It seems like we're doing everything we can to reduce our carbon footprint, especially in subtle ways.
The United States was the second largest contributor to C02 emissions in 2017. While you may think that plastic pollution has nothing to do with carbon dioxide emissions, keep in mind that six times more plastic waste is burned rather than recycled. On the verge of plastic overload, making conscientious decisions in your purchasing habits goes a long way.
But what about printer cartridges? It seems like a trivial topic to focus on, but printer cartridges have long been a contributor to the plastic crisis. What many people don't know is that these cartridges can be recycled. There are over 375 million ink cartridges that end up in a landfill every year. You can reduce this amount by being aware of the second life that can be given to them through recycling.
Refurbished cartridges
The little known fact about printer cartridges is that they are able to take on new forms after being consumed. As the ink is drained and the cartridge is completely empty, the plastic casing is still perfectly fine and can be reused in the future. Many people assume that ink cartridges are toxic materials and should be discarded after one use, but this is far from the truth.
By using recycled ink cartridge casings, companies are able to give new life to old cartridges. These empty cartridges are professionally cleaned to remove any excess or dried ink from the inside. Once cleaned, they are then inspected by top professionals to determine if they are fully functional. As a final step, the fully operational ink cartridges are refilled with a comparable brand quality ink before being sealed and sent for final inspection.
The finish evaluation ensures that the remanufactured cartridge will work perfectly in all aspects, from ink flow to ink consistency. As a comparable alternative to branded cartridges, the benefits of using remanufactured printer cartridges go far beyond environmental aspects alone. Remanufactured cartridges can also cost 50-80% less than full-priced brand-name printer cartridges. This is a double win as you can feel good about saving the environment and saving money in your pocket.
Corporate Environmental Responsibility
Green, green and sustainable are words we hear all the time when it comes to environmental conservation. Large companies have full-fledged teams dedicated to reducing their waste and raising public awareness.
Corporate Environmental Responsibility (CER) is the act of a company proactively doing its part to reduce waste and keep its carbon footprint to a minimum. As a business owner, this can be a major factor in branding. Conglomerates like McDonald's, The Coca-Cola Company and Aramark have all echoed the sentiment and committed to reducing their single-use plastics.
Going green and reducing plastic use is not only beneficial to your business, but also leaves a lasting impression on your customers. Some ink manufacturers have taken advantage of this green aspect and have come up with new services. HP Instant Ink is a subscription-based service that uses recycled cartridges to replenish its customers in a timely manner. Epson has the Epson EcoTank, which is a refillable cartridge system that works with specific Epson printers. And finally, as mentioned earlier, the most common and cost-effective method is to purchase remanufactured cartridges.
Single-use waste
Reusable items have gained popularity in recent years. While we rely on disposable plastic products such as water bottles, pens and plastic bags, we continue to innovate and find space to make reusable items. While there is no way to guarantee that the ink cartridge will be 100% recyclable, you can extend its life cycle by recycling it so that it can be remanufactured in the future.
While the remanufacturing process can give a cartridge a second life, it does not mean that the cartridge can last forever or can be refilled endlessly. Ink and toner cartridges have a limited lifespan, usually enough for about two to three refills. More than that can lead to a defective ink cartridge that is riddled with internal problems that will affect the way it produces ink on paper.
Refurbished cartridges go through such a rigorous testing process to ensure that they work perfectly and as if they were new. Some internal components, especially in toner cartridges, will eventually fail and stop working after a period of time. Some toner cartridges have rollers that degrade and lose their charge. This strict testing process will eliminate deteriorated ink and toner cartridges and ensure that they never get into the hands of the consumer.
Everything we do to conserve plastic can also be done to conserve ink cartridges. Even if the cartridges are reused only once, this can reduce the amount of plastic waste by 50%. Approximately 375 million printer cartridges end up in a landfill every year, by doing your part and purchasing remanufactured ink cartridges you can directly affect the production of new ink cartridges.
At soscartouches.ca we specialize in premium quality remanufactured ink and toner cartridges. All products are thoroughly tested, guaranteed to be compatible with your printer, and produce print results identical to their OEM counterparts. A one-year warranty and 100% customer satisfaction guarantee are also offered on all products. We offer discounted Canon printer ink and other popular brands such as HP, Epson, Lexmark and many others. Check out our website and see how much you can save on your printer ink supplies while helping to keep a greener planet.
