Nappy recycling, roads made from waste, and what it means to grow consciously
Every so often you come across a piece of work so clever you wonder why it is not front-page news, and Pura's approach to nappy recycling is one of those. Pura is a Cheshire-based certified B Corp, founded by two parents in 2020, that makes plant-based nappies and plastic-free wipes, and it is the UK's first carbon-neutral babycare brand. The part that stopped me is what happens to the nappies afterwards. Through its NappiCycle partnership in Carmarthenshire, Wales, used nappies are collected, washed, shredded and separated, and the fibres are turned into hard-wearing pellets that go on to resurface roads. One stretch of the A487 in Wales now contains more than 100,000 recycled nappies. It is the kind of circular thinking that turns a genuine problem into something useful.
And it is a real problem. Around 3 billion disposable nappies are thrown away in the UK every year, according to WRAP, and they are one of the most stubborn waste streams we have. So a route that keeps them out of landfill and puts them to work under our feet genuinely matters. It is worth being honest about the scale, though, and Pura are: this runs as trials and pilots rather than a service every household can yet access. The largest so far, a 2024 scheme in Bristol, recycled more than 770,000 nappies across over 3,400 homes. That honesty is part of what makes it credible. This week, Pura also appointed its first managing director, the leader who grew AO.com past a billion pounds in sales, with a clear brief to take the brand and its impact global, across the UK, the US and beyond.
For me this is what growing consciously actually looks like. You build something with genuine impact, you prove it locally, you are straight with people about where it is up to, and then you bring in the commercial firepower to scale it without losing the mission. That last step is where a lot of conscious brands hesitate, worried that getting serious about growth means selling out. Pura's move says the opposite: that doing good and building a real business are not in tension, and that the way to help more families and keep more waste out of the ground is to grow. The quiet lesson underneath it all is the same as last week's, tell your story. This recycling work is remarkable, and far too few people know it exists.
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
Can disposable nappies actually be recycled?
Yes, though not yet everywhere. Schemes such as Pura's NappiCycle partnership collect used nappies, then wash, shred and separate them so the fibres can be turned into pellets used in road surfacing and other products. It is real and working, but currently runs as local trials and pilots rather than a universal kerbside service, so availability depends on where you live.
How many nappies go to landfill in the UK?
Around 3 billion disposable nappies are thrown away in the UK every year, according to WRAP, making them one of the hardest single-use waste streams to deal with. That scale is exactly why recycling routes and lower-impact materials matter, and why brands working on the problem are worth supporting and talking about.
What does it mean to scale a brand consciously?
It means growing without losing the mission. In practice that looks like proving your impact locally, being honest about where it is up to, and then bringing in experienced commercial leadership to reach more customers. Doing good and running a serious, growing business are not opposites. The brands that last learn to do both, and structures like B Corp help keep them accountable as they scale.
If you are building a sustainability or circularity story and want help telling it honestly and well, that is right up our street at The Nest. Just get in touch.
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Build BETTER. Grow CONSCIOUSLY.
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