Dozens upon dozens of initiatives are already in place to reduce plastic use, including a washing machine product dispenser to encourage the reuse of plastic bottles. One such machine has been going viral recently.
A Reddit user by the name of Lord-AG has posted a photo of a machine found at a local drug store in the Czech Republic that is used to refill empty laundry detergent and dishwashing liquid bottles. Store patrons can simply use the machine to refill their clean empty product bottles instead of buying a new bottle every time they need one.
The drug store in question is Rossman, a chain of German pharmacies. They have partnered up with Henkel, a German chemical and consumer goods company, to fight the problem with disposable plastic packaging. The sign above the machine reads “Beauty is Saving the Nature Together.”
Considering that annual plastic production tonnage is in the millions in the US alone—300 million to be precise—reusing a plastic container just once would diminish the effects of the plastic problem by half.
Such a move towards plastic-free home products is becoming a bit of a no-brainer with businesses and people alike. “For us, it just makes sense,” explained the representative of SOAP Refill Station. “It’s becoming obvious to everyone now that plastic doesn’t just go away. We are all becoming more and more aware of the impact of our wastefulness. But what can we do to help? Reduce, reuse, and refill.”