We started Halen Môn in 1997 because we love the area where we live. It makes sense then that we care deeply about the environment.
Our packaging is an absolute priority for us and we are actively looking into alternatives to our current plastic pouches. It is sadly not as straightforward as a simple instant swap, as the material must of course be food safe to the strictest standards, and sea salt is a corrosive, moist product so a lot of materials simply will not work.
We are regularly audited for extensive food safety and the packaging suppliers quite rightly must meet a huge number of regulations. Finding an alternative is a difficult task, though of course this does not mean impossible.
FUTURE PACKAGING
We are currently doing shelf-life trials with a paper pouch, which would be fully recyclable and UK-made. Look out for our next newsletter as we will be looking for customers to trial this new packaging for us. There is also the possibility of using vegetable-based inks.
CURRENT PACKAGING
Pouches
– Currently our sea salt pouches come with a cardboard header, which is of course recyclable.
– At present, the material we use for the pouches themselves, PET, is recyclable only where facilities exist, which is sadly not everywhere.
Inner bags of Clamp-Top Jars
– The bags we use to line our clamp-top jars are at present made from LDPE, which can be recycled in most supermarkets along with plastic bags.
OTHER WAYS WE’RE GETTING BETTER
We were very proud to win the Queen’s award for sustainability in 2017 – a recognition that we reduce our carbon footprint every single year and will continue to do so as long as we exist. We have recently invested in some Terracycle boxes, meaning that hairnets and gloves worn by salt-makers are collected and recycled.
I have one of your plastic pouches and loo forward to your success with the paper one
I love your pleasing emails with your beautiful photos of the land & sea, and so appreciate your environmental endeavors.
I am so far away in Texas but hope to visit someday.
Thank you for all of it.
Hello!
We’ve visited your facility a couple of years ago and have taken your salt tour, we LOVE your sea salt and went home with salty gifts for everyone. We have some of your Spa Salt as well that we plan to make a salt bar with.
We are also the owners of a sea salt soap company in Hawaii, on the island of Kauai, and experienced the same situation in wrapping our sea salt soaps. After trying different things, we found a biolefin wrap that breaks down quickly, it’s biodegradable. We also needed to keep the moisture away from our salt-heavy bars and after testing different wrapped soaps over time, this product stood up to the test in our humid environment.
I know we are far away, but if you need us to help test, let us know. Also, please check out the biolefin, it breathes, that’s my only concern for you. But if it keeps the heavy humidity out of our salty soaps (they were being sent off and sold all over the world, even sold in Disneyworld in Florida), it might be a start for you.
I hope this helps and best of luck with all the steps, it never ends!
Warmest aloha from Kauai,
Jenny Mason
Love your sea salt came for a visit last year and dwas very impressed. Glad to see it in my Booths Supermarket in windermere.
This is all very exciting. . Was very happy for the opportunity to tour Halen Mon in August. We could use some of your environmental consciousness here in CT. Keep up the good work.