At the Flowers & Plants Association, we’re not perfect by any means, but we’re trying to become greener. We do a few little things, that we hope will have a positive effect on the impact we make on the planet. If you do any little things to be more green, write and let us know so we can do them too.

1. We use both sides of the paper by printing on the back of used sheets (unless we’re mailing the information out! In that case we try and print on both sides of each sheet.) Our old stationery has become our new office notepads. We do double-sided copying where possible, as well. As we copy around 5000 sheets a quarter alone, this adds up to a lot of paper saved.

2. We save electricity – at the end of each working day the last one to leave turns off all our machines and computers at the plug (not on standby), and all the lights are turned off.

We drink filtered tap water, not bottled water – saving tonnes of plastic from being made into bottles and transported around the country.

3. We take public transport into work – tube, bus or train – and we take public transport to meetings as well, wherever possible. We only drive if no public transport is available, or if we have a full transit van for an exhibition. We offer to have external meetings via conference call instead of flying to the destination, if the other people involved agree.

4. We recycle any plastic carrier bags, and the plastic sleeves our magazines come in, so they are not filling up a landfill somewhere (or snagging in a nearby tree). When we do our shopping for the office, we use reusable carriers where possible.

5. We recycle all our paper waste – magazines and newspapers (once we’ve taken our press cuttings out of them), catalogues, envelopes and letters, junk mail, flyers, old files...

6. We email our press releases, our monthly membership newsletter, and our readers now have the option to receive our quarterly newsletter via email as well. All our factsheets are online for viewing, and next year members can receive our annual report via email if they request this.

7. We are saving our old CDs for recycling once we find a company that can take them from us.

8. We donate old computer equipment where possible to a developing world charity, which recycles 100% of everything that is not refurbished for reuse.

9. If you know anyone that recycles plastic plant pots, do let us know.

Join us in going green!!

>> view Green Brides

>> view British Growers

>> view British-Grown Retail Suppliers

>> view Healthy House Plants