positive impact
TOG Knives was launched in 2013 by industrial designer Bert Beagley-Brown. Previously, Bert co-founded a product design consultancy that specialised in creating more environmentally sustainable products.
This philosophy has been carried through to TOG Knives. Here are some of the things we have done at TOG to ensure we have a positive impact on the world...
PRODUCTS
- Our kitchen knife blades have made from 95% recycled steel since day 1.
- We have eliminated virgin plastic from all products except the handle of our Ceramic Honing Rod.
- Our kitchen knife handles are made from Kebony maple, a stabilised version of the wood that lasts longer, is produced by sustainable forestry and has the Swan Eco-label.
- Our chopping boards are made by hand in small batches using wood sourced from sustainably managed forests.• Offcuts from making our chopping boards are used to make our strops and knife racks (shown), reducing waste and material consumption.
- Our leather partner, Muirhead in Scotland, makes the lowest carbon leather in the world. Our strop and knife block products use their leather.
- Our Blade Guards are made from recycled ABS plastic and manufactured in the UK.
PACKAGING
- We have eliminated almost all plastic in our product packaging. The only plastic remaining is thin bags that our Higonokami pocket knives are packaged in (they are sent from Japan in these) and our transparent protective kitchen knife sleeves that we are phasing out in 2024. The sleeves are being replaced by reusable and recycled ABS Blade Guards.
- In most cases we use unprinted and unbleached cardboard to package and ship our products.
- All of our packaging is 100% recyclable.
- Our whetstones come in wooden boxes rather than plastic because this is natural and biodegradable. They are supplied with 100% recycled non-slip mats.
ENERGY USE
- TOG HQ is 100% heated by a biomass (wood pellet) boiler and controlled by an efficient NEST intelligent thermostat.
- TOG HQ electricity comes from our own solar panels, topped up by 100% renewable energy supplied by Good Energy.
- All TOG lighting is LED.
REDUCE, REUSE, RECYCLE, REPAIR
- We encourage people to buy less 'stuff' but higher quality, more durable goods.
- We encourage and empower people to look after and repair their products rather than disposing of and replacing them.
- Since the formation of the business, TOG HQ has recycled absolutely everything that North Somerset will collect from us to recycle.
- We keep and reuse cardboard boxes and packing material as much as possible.
Partnerships
- Since 2019, every year we have partnered with charities to run twin Black Friday campaigns in November. We have raised £2350 for FareShare and £6027 for The Mazi Project, both fighting food poverty. Fareshare also fights food waste.
- We have chosen Michelin Star chef ambassadors Josh Eggleton and Nathan Outlaw, both known for leading their field in sustainability practice.
WEBSITE HOSTING
- Since the start of the business in 2013, our website has been hosted on Green Geeks, Kinsta and then Shopify, all of which run on 100% renewable energy.
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