GREEN & PROTECT Plasters: Our First Step Towards Sustainable Protection – Extra Strong Adhesion from a more Sustainable Plaster

For 100 years, Elastoplast has had you covered – so you can live life uninterrupted. More than ever, the planet we live on needs our help. That’s why we are dedicated to continuously finding ways to lower our resource consumption, environmental impact, and carbon footprint. So that we can continue to have you covered for the next hundred years.
 
This focus on environmental sustainability has inspired us to continuously work to maximise the protection, performance, and efficacy of our portfolio while minimizing the impact it has on the environment. This motivates us to constantly examine the materials we use, as well as where we source them, to reduce their economic impact while adhering to our strict standards for quality and performance. 

For more information about previous achievements in sustainability, please see our Commitment to Sustainability.

The GREEN & PROTECT range is our first range of more sustainable plasters that uses naturally derived and biodegradable fibres for the wound pad and backing. They provide safe and reliable wound protection that you’ve come to expect from Elastoplast, so you don’t have to compromise between performance and sustainability. 
 
GREEN & PROTECT sustainable plasters combine the flexibility of a fabric plaster with water-resistant protection. The plasters’ durable, robust material is breathable and hypoallergenic, making them extra skin-friendly. 
 
Our GREEN & PROTECT range features extra-strong adhesion, is composed of naturally derived and biodegradable fibres in the wound pad and backing, and offers the same protection as our other lines of plasters, blocking 99% of bacteria*. In addition, the GREEN & PROTECT range is 100% climate neutralised, meaning that the remaining CO2 emissions along the value chain are balanced through certified climate projects. 
 
* Elastoplast plasters protect against dirt & bacteria.

We have maximised the sustainability of all components of the GREEN & PROTECT range wherever possible. Read on to discover just how we’ve improved every part of our GREEN & PROTECT range. 
 
Wound Pad
The GREEN & PROTECT wound pad is bio-based and fully biodegradable. We achieved this by using lyocell and polylactide acid (PLA) fibres. Lyocell is a bio-based, biodegradable fibre based on cellulose, which we source from 
wood grown in sustainably managed forests PLA (polylactide acid) is made from corn, a renewable resource, and is biodegradable in industrial composting processes.  

Release Liner
A plaster’s release liner ensures that it maintains its sticking power while being easy to open. Our GREEN & PROTECT release liner is made from FSC®-certified1 paper coated with biomass-balanced silicone.
 
Backing
The backing component of our GREEN & PROTECT plasters are made from viscose fibres. Viscose is a bio-based fibre made from wood. To minimise our environmental impact further, we source this viscose only from wood sourced from sustainably managed forests. To offer better protection, our viscose backings repel water while remaining fully biodegradable in freshwater. 
 
Adhesive
Our latex-free synthetic rubber adhesive is designed to deliver optimal performance while being gentle on the skin.2
 
Packaging
We’ve also ensured that the packaging of our GREEN & PROTECT range is as sustainable as possible. To ensure the highest performance and safety, the strips of our sustainable plaster come enclosed in a paper-based sealing pouch to prevent dirt from coming into contact with the plaster, wound pad, or adhesive layer. As with our backing component, the paper used here is FSC®-certified1. Our folding box is composed of 93% recycled cartons and is printed using inks free of mineral oil.

All of this adds up to a more sustainable plaster. Though 100% of the electricity used in the production of the GREEN & PROTECT RANGE is from renewable sources, inevitably there are certain processes in the production chain that lead to remaining carbon emissions. Elastoplast balances these remaining emissions by supporting afforestation projects. One of these projects is located in the Chinese province of Guizhou and aims to replant forest on 23,700 ha of formerly barren land. The project aims to mitigate the effects of climate change through sequestration of atmospheric CO₂ in the growth of the trees while supporting local sustainable development, environmental conservation, fostering biodiversity, and enhancing soil quality. The afforestation activities are carried out in cooperation with the local village committees. The trees planted are predominantly native species such as Masson Pine, China Fir, Cypresses, and Pinus Yunnanensis. 
 
Note on composting
While Elastoplast has taken significant measures to maximise the proportions of naturally derived materials and biodegradable fibres, our product is not compostable. A used plaster has been in contact with a wound and therefore carries bodily fluids such as blood. This means a plaster must be correctly disposed of in household waste and cannot be placed into organic waste disposal or discarded into nature. 

Elastoplast is dedicated to protecting the climate and humanity’s natural heritage in any way that we can. Our sustainability research process is ongoing and we are continuously looking into the materials we use to assess whether more sustainable alternatives are available. 
 
For 100 years, we’ve made a business out of caring for people. And in the 21st century, that means caring for the climate as well. Because in sustainability, just as in life, Elastoplast has got you covered. For a life uninterrupted.


1 Beiersdorf FSC® licence number FSC® N003710. 
2 At the moment, there is no bio-based or biodegradable adhesive available. Our team is researching continuously and hopes to be able to source a more sustainable substitute in the future.

Learn more about our Green & Protect Plasters.