Office supplies

Buying office supplies

1. Consider whether you can rent instead of buying new.
2. Favour more environmentally friendly and efficient products.
3. Reuse and recycle where possible.

Printer and copier paper

• Minimise your use of paper in the office. Prefer using online documents.
• Purchase recycled paper.
• Reuse paper whenever possible.
• Recycle paper when it is no longer useful. Shred paper with sensitive information.

Paper take a lot of natural resources to make – trees and water – so it's important to minimise unnecessary use of paper and source it responsibly.

Recycled paper uses much less water and energy to make (50-70% less energy), and produces less carbon emissions than virgin paper whilst also reducing the amount of waste sent to landfill.

For example, Xerox Recycled Copier Paper is good quality, unbleached, 100% recycled and made with a minimum of 75% post-consumer recycled pulp. It can be found in Ryman.

Also look out for Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) certified paper, which ensures that the trees used to make the paper have been sourced in an environmentally friendly and socially responsible manner.

Printer cartridges

• Prefer using refillable ink cartridges to always buying new.
• Recycle ink cartridges when they are no longer useful.

Some printer cartridges can be recycled. Other brands like Brother, Canon and HP can be refilled at shops like Cartridge Right in Bristol.

More information

Our guide to environmental stewardship gives more advice on minimising the use of office supplies, such as paper and printer ink.

You may also find the following websites helpful:

• UK:
  • Protect the Planet green office supplies
  • RAJA UK responsible office supplies
• Belgium:
  • Responsible Office BE
  • RAJA NL-BE milieuvriendelijke kantoorbenodigdheden
  • RAJA FR-BE produits éco-responsables
• France:
  • Responsible Office FR
  • RAJA FR produits éco-responsables
• Netherlands:
  • Responsible Office NL
  • RAJA NL milieuvriendelijke kantoorbenodigdheden