The company's decomposable magazine wrapper is derived from potato products, including waste from the food industry, and does not contain any oil-based materials, plastics or harmful toxins, making it eligible for EN13432 certification in line with the EU Packaging Directive.
Birmingham-based Bakergoodchild said a handful of its clients have started making use of the new wrap, including tour operator Audley Travel for its quarterly magazine. Normal plastic polywrap is still available to customers.
Head of marketing Gunvinder Bhogal said: “Our customers are already very taken with the new wrap. It does cost a little more than regular wrap, but as we see it this product comes with a number of benefits and no disadvantages.
“On top of being eco-friendly, it has a softer feel than plastic as well as a frosty finish that Audley has said makes it appear like a more premium product than before.
“We have experienced no disruption whatsoever in introducing this product to our portfolio, as there has been no need to install new equipment or to augment our existing kit. We will now look to phase out plastic entirely as we move forward.”
Bakergoodchild continues to use two Norpack P9 polywrapping lines to apply both the plastic and starch wraps to orders. They run at up to 8,000 inserts/hr for A4 and A5. The starch-based wrap material has a limited shelf life and so is ordered as needed.
The use of the bio-plastic is part of a wider initiative to go greener for Bakergoodchild, which is running campaigns with clients to educate them on more sustainable use of direct mail in marketing campaigns. Bhogal said the aim was to push the brand globally and become a "thought leader" in environmental matters across the industry.
Bhogal, who joined the growing company last month, also said Bakergoodchild had its sights on general growth by investing further in people and equipment. The company currently turns over £9m; Bhogal said Bakergoodchild’s previous-cited target of £11m by the end of 2018-2019 was still “perfectly feasible”.
The company now employs more than 60 members of staff.
