Plastic Toys

Children’s toys are almost impossible to recycle. This is because they’re usually made from multiple different types of materials, and would have to be completely disassembled and recycled in the correct avenues in order to be recycled at all (Warren, 2018). This is time consuming and difficult and results in most toys getting thrown into the general waste. With 90% of children’s toys made out of plastic, this leads to huge amounts of landfill which will take over 400 years to decompose (Wright et al. 2018). 

Second-hand toys can be a great way to avoid this, however, for some plastic toys this option poses safety risks to children’s health (Goldberg, 2019). Specifically, children who gain second hand toys from friends, relatives or other means, risk unsafe levels of chemicals that have been linked to developmental issues and organ damage (Rapaport, 2018). 

The cheap plastics used in children’s toys are also easily breakable or damaged, leading to further toy waste as they’re quickly discarded and replaced.

Considering that in Britain we spent £3.3 billion on toys in 2018, It’s an issue that we feel isn’t discussed enough. Whilst many parents search for more sustainable and healthy possibilities, there are limited options to escape the plastic fortress surrounding the toy industry. The sustainable options that do exist, can often be inaccessible to many, due to the high cost needed to cover sustainable materials and ethical manufacturing.

We’re on a mission to find a new model of toy consumption. At Utopi, we’re determined to reduce this harmful waste by developing sustainable, non-plastic, toys which support children’s creative play, in a way that’s accessible to everyone.