We recognise our responsibility to be a force for good across THE PIGs. That’s why we’re proud to recycle our used soap from our hotel bedrooms with our friends at Clean the World. Brothers Tommie and Austin Eaton, sat down with us to share how it’s done…
Tell us about Clean the World – what is it, and how does it work?
Clean the World is a social enterprise that recycles used soap bars in the hospitality industry and turns them into new bars of soap.
We do this through our Global Recycling Program – where we divert soap bars and plastic amenities (that hotels would have otherwise discarded) from landfills and recycle the soap into new bars.
Since we established in 2009, Clean the World has distributed over 84 million bars of repurposed soap to support communities around the world that are vulnerable to hygiene-related illnesses. The bars are exclusively donated to global NGOs, such as The WASH Foundation.
In this time, we’ve also recycled 3.9 million kg of plastic, which has diverted over 12.1 million kg of waste from landfill. Overall, Clean the World is about making a positive impact, one recycled soap bar at a time!
What makes a recycled bar of soap better for the planet than a new bar of soap?
Recycling soap avoids the need to create new bars (thus saving water and reducing carbon emissions), and it diverts waste away from landfills – so we mitigate the environmental strain on our planet. By repurposing soap, we prevent potential contaminants from escaping into the atmosphere, and chemicals from leaching into the soil. And, most importantly, we extend a lifeline to communities in need.
How do bars of used soap get recycled? (Can you give us a step-by-step guide, perhaps?)
- Soap bars are collected from our Global Hospitality Recycling partners’ locations (like THE PIGs).
- The soap bars are meticulously refined into “noodles” to remove all impurities.
- Using a proprietary process, Clean the World creates new & sanitised soap bars.
- The new soap bars are tested by a third-party laboratory to ensure their cleanliness.
- The new soap bars are distributed through NGOS, such as The WASH Foundation.
Does every recycled bar look different in colour, shape and size, then?
Our soap bars have a consistent appearance and texture, and each one proudly bears the Clean the World logo to signify its commitment to sustainability. This uniformity and uniqueness make Clean the World’s soap bars environmentally conscious… as well as being a real treat for the senses!
How many repurposed bars of soap have been made (so far!) with the kgs of used soap from THE PIGs?
From July 2023 – April 2024, THE PIGs have together collected an impressive 535kg of soap, which equates to donating 10,794 bars of recycled soap to communities in need. This positively contributes to other environmental social, governance (ESG) metrics too, which are tracked, measured, and recorded through Clean the World’s impact reporting system. These metrics include:
- Waste Diversion: By recycling used soap, THE PIG has prevented 372 kilograms of wastage.
- Water Conservation: The recycled soap bars have saved an estimated 12,643 liters of water, which otherwise would have been utilised in the production of new soap bars.
- Carbon Footprint Reduction: THE PIG’s commitment to Clean the World’s Hospitality Recycling Program has led to a fantastic reduction of 622kg of carbon footprint reduction.
We’re extremely proud to partner with THE PIG – we believe they are a central figure within the hospitality industry, driving positive change and showcasing a sustainable business model in action. We’re really looking forward to driving further impact together.
Supporting local is at the heart of everything we do at THE PIG. So, this spring, we donated some of our Clean the World soap bars to local communities close to THE PIG-near Bath and THE PIG-at Harlyn Bay. Read our summer 2024 issue of Hogwash to find out more!
