Kent Express is on a journey to become the UK’s greenest dental supplier, and we’d like to share our progress with you.

Many companies publish generic statements about environmental responsibility, but few give details on exactly what that means in practice. Fewer still admit that becoming a more sustainable company can be a challenging, long term process.

We are currently collaborating with industry experts to examine every aspect of our business, so that we can understand how we can further improve our green credentials. We might not be able to change everything we’d like to on day one, but we are totally committed to being the greenest business we can be, and we’re investing the time and resources necessary to make this happen.

• Our head office has become “paperless first”. Documents are always shared digitally as a preference, and only printed if absolutely necessary.
• We have reduced staff travel by introducing hybrid working policies for head office staff and increasing the use of secure video conferencing. If possible, meetings are held virtually rather than involving travel.
• We use air dryers in bathrooms to save paper.
• Low energy lighting has been fitted throughout our head office and warehouses. Motion sensors are used to ensure lighting is only active when necessary.

• All staff have been provided with reusable drinks bottles. Water dispensing machines are available throughout our head office and warehouse complex, connected to the mains supply, eliminating the need for single use plastic bottles.

• We recycle all possible materials in our head office and warehouse including paper, cardboard, plastics and metals, with information for colleagues at every recycling point.
• Cardboard and plastics are baled for efficient transport from our warehouse.
• The stretch wrap used by our warehousing teams has been switched from virgin materials to 30% recycled LDPE.

• We stock a range of eco-friendly dental supplies which also offer excellent value. We will review the range regularly and introduce new products where we can.
• We’ve switched from using standard paper in our flyers to FSC mix paper: that means that the paper is from sustainable woodland with high conservation values, minimal use of chemicals, and forest that is managed in a way that benefits both workers and the local community. You’ll see the “FSC Mix” logo on the back of all our flyers.
• We’ve stopped using non-biodegradable bags for our flyer packs, and now use oxo-biodegradable bags. This will save an estimated 25,000 single use bags annually, equivalent to over 15km of plastic bags laid end to end (longer than 1,000 London buses!). This plastic contains a unique additive that, upon weathering, biotransforms the material into a bioavailable wax that can be mineralised by naturally occurring bacteria and fungi with 1-2 years, leaving no microplastics behind. Our biodegradable bags ensure that our flyers reach you in perfect condition, but will degrade naturally when composted. Our film conforms to BSI PAS 9017:2020 for biodegradability of polyolefins. More information can be found at www.polymateria.com
• We are introducing a digital cloud-proofing tool for our Creative and marketing teams. This means we can reduce our use of paper further still as the whole flyer production cycle will be digital up until the point of printing on FSC Mix paper.
• We have set up an internal sustainability employee group who are examining processes across all areas of our business to help drive sustainability improvements.
• Colleagues are encouraged to car-share and travel to the office by walking or public transport if possible.