Recycling in the Glove Industry

In today’s world, many are concerned with the pollution generated from single use items, an issue that is rather unavoidable in the glove industry. In order to maintain important health stipulations and hand safety, gloves need to be replaced multiple times – in some professions gloves are replaced daily and by the hour. An obvious example would be medical professionals donning new gloves between patients. While unavoidable, there are ways to minimize the impact of single use disposable gloves. Previously, the Ask GIA blog has discussed reusing gloves and reducing the amount of excess waste in the manufacturing process of gloves. Additionally, and the topic the blog expands on this week, is the ability to recycle certain gloves.

Can gloves be recycled?

This is dependent on the material used to manufacture the glove. There is a new emerging trend in the glove industry centered around bio-based materials. Bio-based materials are materials intentionally developed from renewable biological sources (living or once-living organisms). These materials can be sourced from a wide variety such as: plants, animals, microorganisms, and biogasses derived from waste or sewage. This separates them from petroleum-based or synthetic materials which are derived from non-renewable fossil fuels. In today’s world, bio-based materials are used across various industries including and not limited to: packaging, textiles, construction, and medical devices. The advantage and desire to introduce bio-based materials into the manufacturing process is their ability to reduce our carbon footprint.

 

Bio-based materials are easier to recycle as well. They are becoming more relevant as the chemical recycling process of bio-based materials requires far less energy than the chemical or mechanical recycling of conventional plastic. The dangers of creating microplastics when recycling traditional plastic can be avoided as there are no microplastics produced during the process and no fossil raw material input needed. At SW, we are also shifting towards bio-based materials. SW’s TotalForm glove series is a combination of our patented EcoTek technology with bio-based materials. It is our brand’s new general use glove meant for general maintenance, construction, carton handling, transportation, general assembly, forestry, and more.

At SW, we are continually thinking of new ways to promote sustainability. SW prioritizes transparency and high quality products; making it effortless for our consumers to make the choice of quality hand protection while protecting the environment. All of the specifications of our gloves can be found on our website under their specific product pages.