Swindon's Refill / zero waste champions
Some local businesses are leading the way on our journey to eliminate plastic pollution and achieve zero waste. Here are some of Swindon's Refill / zero waste champions:
Weigh It Up
"Matthew and Michelle welcome you to their independently run Refill shop with over a hundred different dried ingredients including teas, coffees, herbs and spices as well as pastas, rice's, pulses and legumes. We also have an array of condiments, cleaning products, gifts and drinks."
More info on Weigh It Up's website.
10 Green Bottles
"10 Green Bottles delivers fresh, organic milk, butter, cream and yogurt from our own herd of Guernsey cows on our own farm, Berkeley Farm, located in Wroughton, Swindon. We also deliver other locally sourced, organic products - eggs, cheese, bread, honey, jam, crisps (and so much more!) from businesses within 50 miles of our farm. Using all electric vans and milk floats, charged by solar panels, your delivery will be waiting on your doorstep by 7:30am. All our glass containers can be rinsed, returned and reused and all packaging is decomposable making us a zero carbon and zero waste business."
"Not only do we support local businesses, we also support local food banks with our Donate A Pint scheme. To find out more information about our products and service, or to create an account and start receiving deliveries, you can download our 10 Green Bottles app (iPhone | Android) or go to our website".
Purton House Organics
"We are a family-run organic box scheme, delivering freshly produced fruit, vegetables, meat, eggs and extras around Swindon, Cirencester and Marlborough. We have an extensive farm shop in Purton, near Swindon, stocking a range of local produce; and we supply wholesale to pubs, restaurants, shops and festivals. All our activities on the farm respect nature, wildlife, and encourage biodiversity – both plants and animals."
"We sell our veg loose. We give customers cardboard boxes to re-use rather than plastic carriers. We’re flexible so people can take exactly what they need and no more. We use reusable or compostable packaging - we even wash out plastic bags and re-use them when we have to use them for delicate green veg. We have a recycling station for eco-friendly body and cleaning products, sourced from ethical suppliers."
"Most of our suppliers deliver to us directly rather than through couriers so we rarely have pallets double wrapped in clingfilm (standard practice to keep pallets in one piece on a lorry). We use compostable coffee cups and lids. We encourage people to bring their own coffee cups offering 10p off their drinks when they do. Most of our bakery products such as bread, cakes and some pies come unwrapped."
Purton House Organic's website.
Lush
Around 90% of cosmetics contain microplastics. Lush break the mould when it comes to cosmetics. They design packaging for zero waste, have a Pot Return Scheme, use natural ingredients, have strong ethical practises, and support grassroots activism.
Lush kindly supported Plastic Free Swindon in July 2023 through its Charity Pot Scheme. More info including Lush's website.
Refill Station
"I'm Louise & I started a new business in January 2024 called Refill Station. Initially just in my home town of Royal Wootton Bassett near Swindon, Wiltshire. Offering Eco cleaning products/refills, kitchenware, toiletries & loo rolls! All stock is chosen to try & help reduce single use plastic, made of sustainable materials wherever possible, eco friendly, cruelty free, beautiful by design & fragrance & most are Vegan too!
Wednesdays I have a stall at the lovely Royal Wootton Bassett Market 8.45am-2pm+. Also on Saturdays in Royal Wootton Bassett I do home visits for refills at doorsteps. I can also potentially do home visits to other local areas too on request. I also attend Craft Fairs, public events & events at businesses. I'm trying to attend as many as I can to spread the refill love!"
You can connect with Refill Station on Facebook or at **javascript protected email address**.
Riverford Organics
Riverford Organics is an ethical business which delivers organic food and provides a fair deal to all small-scale farms / growers. Although they don't have refill options, they provide sustainable packaging: cardboard, brown paper, and home-compostable plastics.
Leading lights
Swindon has over 70 Refill stations, most of them businesses. They are places where we can refill / reuse instead of the pollution of single-use. Refill water bottles, buy take-away food without the packaging, do zero waste shopping.
You can find local Refill stations via the Refill app, our local stations list, or by looking out for Refill window stickers and posters.
End of an era
Swindon Pulse Wholefoods
Swindon Pulse Wholefoods was a much-loved workers co-operative founded in 1976 which served Swindon for 48 years. The shop provided locally-sourced vegetarian and vegan produce from local farms; organic fruit and veg' from Blacklands Organics and Jubilee Organics, organic milk and butter from Berkeley Farm, local honey, eggs from Sherston eggs and Haresfield Farm, and organic bread from Astons at Inkpen and Pete's Micro Bakery.
Pulse aspired to do the right things, to serve people, animals and environment. They supported the Refill scheme and tried to provide zero waste where possible for products such as cosmetics, detergents, loose herbs and spices, refill flakes, grains and beans.
Sadly Pulse closed its doors on the 26th March 2024. They leave us with an awesome legacy and much hope. Thank you Swindon Pulse Wholefoods!
