Who Gives A Crap?

When I was growing up, no one recycled really – other than the odd drinks can perhaps.  I can remember when I was getting towards the end of Primary School, they situated a newspaper recycling bin in our school.  It was very exciting and everyone wanted to recycle their papers (even though it was just essentially throwing it in an oversized bin!)  I really just had one Aunt who seemed to care about the environment.  I remember her buying me a book about looking after the environment which came with stickers of a frog saying its cool to be green.

I look back on those days and I realise just how far we have come.  In our area, we are able to recycle plastic, glass and paper.  It’s very little hassle as it all goes into one bin so we don’t even have to sort it.  Most weeks our recycling bin is far fuller than our landfill.  And yet, I look at our shopping when it is delivered and I see how much plastic it is covered in and  I do feel guilty about the impact we are having on our planet.  At some point we are going to reach a stage where there will be no more space to dump the waste we keep creating.

So what can I do to help the situation?
It often feels like we are just one person and can we really make that much of an impact?
If lots of people all make a small impact, surely that would result in a big impact! (Well I hope so anyway.)

I’ve been following with great interest Life In Fife’s May Makeover.  Each day of May, she is sharing something small you can change to help reduce your plastic consumption and waste and to be a little more eco friendly.

Inspired by this, I decided that I would make a small change in my life and try recycled toilet paper from Who Gives A Crap.  Here follows my honest review.
They haven’t paid me or gifted me their product.  I walked into our local plastic free shop to buy a roll to test…

The first thing that struck me whilst perusing their website is the increase in cost.  On the surface, it does appear to be quite a bit more expensive than a usual brand of toilet paper.  The roll in the middle is smaller allowing Who Gives A Crap to make double length rolls.  Because of the smaller roll in the middle, it still fits on a standard toilet roll holder.  Many users reported that it lasts longer and so although the initial cost is higher, the difference isn’t so much because the product lasts longer.

One of the major criticisms leveled at this toilet paper is that the toilet roll sheets are smaller.  That is definitely the case however I have found I use the same number of sheets and haven’t really noticed a difference in my toilet paper experience.
(Too much information about my toilet roll consumption I feel!)

We have been using the standard 3 ply toilet paper and whilst it may not be quite as soft as the golden labrador’s toilet roll, it is my no means hard or rough.  I’m going to wipe my bottom with it and not go to sleep under it so I think its ‘softness’ is absolutely fine.

Another criticism I have noticed is that the sheets aren’t perforated well and so it is hard to separate them.  Maybe this is something that Who Gives A Crap have taken into consideration and improved upon because I have not found this to be the case at all.

As well as being 100% recycled, the toilet roll is also wrapped in paper and is delivered in a cardboard box so straight away I am reducing my plastic as my toilet rolls aren’t packaged in a plastic bag.    Each toilet roll is wrapped in a very jolly covering which is quite fun and means they make a rather eye catching display!

The other factor that really appeals to me is that 50% of their profits goes towards building toilets for those in need.  According to their website, they have donated over £1million to charity.  That’s on top of the trees, energy and water they have saved.

I have been really pleased with our Who Gives A Crap toilet roll so much so that we have ordered a box of 48 rolls.  I would wholeheartedly recommend them.  If you fancy making the swap too, by clicking here, you’ll receive £5 off your first order.