**12/2024 - Due to regulatory pressure from the FTC and the State of California, GreenCircle has decided to cease all biodegradable nitrile glove certifications
SAME PROTECTION & PERFORMANCE, BUT THESE GLOVES ARE BETTER FOR THE PLANET
Consumers show they favor Eco-friendly or sustainable products, but sustainability is a word that anyone can claim leading to a term referred to as "green washing".
When it comes to sustainability claims, consumer’s desire clear, comprehensive messaging and this is putting pressure on companies to be more transparent.
Unbiased, independent third party certifications for sustainability claims must undergo evaluations to validate that a product has been thoroughly assessed and verified to applicable standards. Independent verification ultimately allows a brand to get ahead of the competition and an opportunity to distinguish itself.
Founded in 2009, GreenCircle® Certification was developed after encountering many false and unsubstantiated biodegradability claims in the marketplace. A product stamped with GreenCircle® Certification has demonstrated the product has been thoroughly assessed to fully breakdown!
PPE Waste
PPE waste has become so problematic that is common to see disposable face masks and gloves littered just about everywhere. And that’s just the tangible environmental impact we see in our daily lives — new research has found that the pandemic has created an estimated 8.4m tons of plastic waste across 193 countries, and about 25,900 tons of that waste has leaked into the ocean.
With COVID-19, single-use glove waste has rose over tenfold due to the spike in usage. With a 100 billion pairs of gloves being disposed annually pre-pandemic, now is the time to consider a better solution for our planet!
A Healthier Solution For Our Planet
Fortunately, there are two dedicated and innovative glove companies proving their commitment to sustainability and produce biodegradable single-use latex free nitrile gloves and nitrile coated chemical barrier gloves that are GreenCircle® Certified!
WHAT'S GREENCIRCLE® CERTIFIED?
GreenCircle® Certified is an internationally recognized third-party certification entity whose thorough evaluation processes provide independent verification that sustainability claims related to an organization’s products and operations are honest, valid, and verified. GreenCircle® is ISO 17065 compliant, following industry requirements for bodies certifying products, processes, and services.
GreenCircle® biodegradable certification demonstrates an organization’s commitment to utilize materials and develop products that will completely break down and return to nature within a reasonably short period of time after customary disposal and reduce reliance on materials that do not decompose, thereby reducing the amount of landfill waste.
Below are two manufactuers with GreenCircle® Certified biodegradable hand protection solutions.
SHOWA® - THE ORIGINATOR
From the first family of soft low modulus formula, single use latex-free gloves, SHOWA® glove has achieved the GreenCircle® certification for a growing segment of protective gloves that meet all the necessary qualifications to be certified for biodegradable claims.
SHOWA® gloves with Eco Best Technology® (EBT) are engineered with ingredients that promote accelerated biodegradation in biologically active landfills. The ASTM D5526-12 test certification demonstrated that SHOWA® Eco-Best Technology® gloves achieved 82% biodegradation in only 386 days while gloves without EBT achieved only 1.9% biodegradation over the same time. That means less PPE sitting in landfills for decades and better waste management around the world.
SW® SUSTAINABLE SOLUTIONS
SW® Sustainable Solutions has been a premier manufacturer of single-use gloves for decades and has achieved GreenCircle® Certification for a variety of protective gloves that meet all the necessary qualifications to be certified for biodegradable claims. The ASTM D5526-12 certification demonstrated that SW® Sustainable Solutions EcoTek® gloves achieved 92.6% biodegradation in 2.5 years. Their incineration-friendly single-use glove styles continuously push the boundaries of quality, while innovative materials and manufacturing technologies enhance worker performance and fuel business success.
HELP MAKE A SUSTAINABLE WORLD
Infusing gloves with biodegradable technology creates a speedy, natural degradation process that’s better for the planet and is one solution that can mitigate PPE waste moving forward. Manufacturers, providers, suppliers, processors and consumers can trust that GreenCircle® Certified hand protection products from SHOWA® and SW® Safety have been verified to applicable standards! Convert to a healthier choice for our planet today!
