*11/2024 - Due to the regulatory pressure from the FTC and the State of California, GreenCircle has decided to cease all biodegradable nitrile glove certifications

When It Comes to Sustainable Gloves, Can You Back It Up?

SAME PROTECTION & PERFORMANCE, BUT THESE GLOVES ARE BETTER FOR THE PLANET

Consumers show they favor eco-friendly or sustainable products, but sustainability is a word that anyone can claim. When it comes to sustainability claims, consumer’s desire clear, comprehensive messaging and this is putting pressure on companies to be more transparent.

Unbiased, independent third party certifications for sustainability claims must undergo evaluations to validate that a product has been thoroughly assessed and verified to applicable standards. Independent verification ultimately allows a brand to get ahead of the competition and an opportunity to distinguish itself.

Founded in 2009, GreenCircle® Certification was developed after encountering many false and unsubstantiated biodegradability claims in the marketplace. A product stamped with GreenCircle® Certification has demonstrated the product has been thoroughly assessed to fully breakdown!

P.P.E. Waste

P.P.E. waste has become so problematic that is common to see masks and disposable gloves littered just about everywhere. And that’s just the tangible environmental impact we see in our daily lives — new research has found that the pandemic created an estimated 8.4m tons of plastic waste across 193 countries, and about 25,900 tons of that waste has leaked into the ocean. With COVID-19, single-use glove waste rose over tenfold due to the spike in usage. With a 100 billion pairs of gloves being disposed annually pre-pandemic, now is the time to consider a better solution for our planet!

A Healthier Solution For Our Planet

Fortunately, there are two dedicated and innovative glove companies proving their commitment to sustainability and produce biodegradable single-use latex free nitrile gloves and nitrile coated chemical barrier gloves that are GreenCircle® Certified!

   WHAT'S GREENCIRCLE® CERTIFIED

GreenCircle® Certified is an internationally recognized third-party certification entity whose thorough evaluation processes provide independent verification that sustainability claims related to an organization’s products and operations are honest, valid, and verified. GreenCircle is ISO 17065 compliant, following industry requirements for bodies certifying products, processes, and services.

GreenCircle® biodegradable certification demonstrates an organization’s commitment to utilize materials and develop products that will completely break down and return to nature within a reasonably short period of time after customary disposal and reduce reliance on materials that do not decompose, thereby reducing the amount of waste in landfills.

Below are two manufactuers with GreenCircle® Certified biodegradable hand protection solutions.

  SHOWA® | THE ORIGINATOR OF THE FIRST NITRILE GLOVE

From the first family of low-modulus, single use latex-free gloves, SHOWA® glove has achieved the GreenCircle® certification for a growing line-up of protective gloves that meet all the necessary qualifications to be certified for biodegradable claims.  SHOWA® gloves with Eco Best Technology® (EBT) are engineered with ingredients that promote accelerated biodegradation in biologically active landfills. The ASTM D5526-12 certification demonstrated that SHOWA® Eco-Best Technology® gloves achieved 82% biodegradation in only 386 days while gloves without EBT achieved only 1.9% biodegradation over the same time. That means less P.P.E. sitting in landfill for decades and better waste management around the world. With SHOWA's® impressive portfolio of biodegradable single use gloves, achieving sustainability is in your hands!

    SW® | PREMIER MANUFACTURER

SW® Sustainable Solutions has been a premier manufacturer of single-use gloves for decades and has achieved GreenCircle® Certification for a vast portfolio of protective gloves that meet all the necessary qualifications to be certified for biodegradable claims. The ASTM D5526-12 certification demonstrated that SW® EcoTek® gloves achieved 92.6% biodegradation in 2.5 years. Their single-use glove styles continuously push the boundaries of quality, while innovative materials and manufacturing technologies such as Energel® moisturing technology, Breach Alert™ barrier detection and moisture management technologies that enhance worker performance and fuel business success. The National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) standard 1999 specifies the requirements for EMS protective clothing to protect the user from performing patient care during emergency medical operations from contact with blood and body fluid-borne pathogens. SW’s MegaMan® Ecotek® Nitrile Exam Gloves passed the stringent design, documentation, and performance testing for single-use gloves for emergency medical operations.

HELP MAKE A SUSTAINABLE WORLD

Infusing gloves with biodegradable technology creates a speedy, natural degradation process that’s better for the planet and is one solution that can mitigate P.P.E. waste moving forward. Manufacturers, providers, suppliers, processors and consumers can trust that GreenCircle® Certified hand protection products from SHOWA® and SW® Safety have been verified to applicable standards!

Convert to a healthier choice for our planet today. All you need to do is tap the link and …

+shop for GreenCircle® Certified Gloves here now

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