A family business has invested £250,000 developing environmentally friendly commercial cleaning products after its founder was shocked by lockdown litterbugs who left a beauty spot covered in plastic rubbish.
EnviroShot is the first in a new range of sustainable products from leading hygiene product, services and equipment supplier Shorrock Trichem, which is based in Atherton, Greater Manchester.
They have been designed to reduce the use of single use plastics and to help cut the amount of waste going to landfill.
Duncan Fishwick, founder and managing director of Shorrock Trichem, started the business on the search for innovative, environmentally friendly products after being shocked by the damage being caused by non-recyclable products and packaging during the Covid-19 pandemic.
Over the course of one single weekend during lockdown, it was reported that a staggering three tons of waste had been collected from one of his favourite walking spots, Beacon Fell Country Park in Lancashire, most of which was destined for landfill.
The result of his subsequent work is a range of dehydrated versions of popular cleaning products, turned into small dissolvable capsules. Add a capsule to a trigger bottle or mop bucket filled with water, stir and start cleaning.
All the packing in the EnviroShot range is fully compostable and its trigger sprays and bottles are designed to be used time and time again to prevent unnecessary plastic wastage.
Because of its light weight EnviroShot uses up 95 per cent less fuel in transport when compared to liquid products, reducing the carbon footprint throughout the supply chain.
And all the products in the range are also vegan and have 100 per cent biodegradable formulas.
Duncan Fishwick said: “The report of the mess left on Beacon Fell really shocked me and really underlined in my mind the real importance of a sustainable future.
“Non-recyclable products and packaging are destroying the very beauty that we admire by piling walkways, roads, and landmarks full of rubbish.
“Although we are not all responsible for the damage, we all have a part to play in putting this right.”
In the UK it is estimated that five million tonnes of plastic is used every year, nearly half of which is packaging.
The UK is also one of the biggest producers of plastic waste in the world, second only to the US.
Duncan’s aim was to source products that didn’t heavily involve single-use plastic, to lower carbon emissions and store ingredients and finished products in environmentally friendly packaging.
That led him to the discovery that by dehydrating cleaning products and wrapping them in water-soluble capsules, a more environmentally friendly range of products could be created.
To support the vision, Shorrock Trichem recruited a new team of like-minded people with a dedicated focus on creating a strong eco-friendly brand. The result is EnviroShot, with more green products in the pipeline.
Duncan said: “We have a responsibility to provide our customers with innovative and sustainable products.
“The next generation is now coming into the business, including my son, with other second-generation employees.
“That drives the importance of sending the business in a sustainable direction as we think about what we are leaving behind for them.”
Founded in 2000, family business Shorrock Trichem is the largest independent company in its sector.
The business employs more than 280 workers at its base near Wigan and supplies customers across the North of England.
