DALLAS, TX — Using recyclable material is good, but using no material is even better.
With that in mind, Kimberly-Clark is testing out toilet paper rolls that don't have cardboard tubes on the inside. The tube-free rolls of Scott Naturals are being sold at Walmart and Sam's Club stores in the northeast U.S. starting next month.
Sales will determine if the tube-free design will be rolled out to other markets and even possibly used with paper towels.
Kimberly-Clark (NYSE: KMB) brand manager Doug Daniels told USA Today the tube-free rolls are made with a winding process that's similar to one used for tissue sold to businesses.
The U.S. creates about 160 million pounds of waste from the 17 billion toilet paper tubes produced annually. The recycling rate for paper in the U.S. is around 63 percent, and that rate includes all types of paper, and means plenty of tubes are going to the trash (or, possibly, craft projects).
Scott Naturals even had a poll conducted of consumers, finding that 37 percent frequently recycle cardboard toilet paper tubes and 50 percent throw them away.
Toilet paper tube - CC license by Flickr user GorillaSushi
It will sell as long as this
It will sell as long as this doesn't follow the law of unintended consequences. My apologies to the teachers (we do save these and take them to day care or recycle them ourselves), as long as Scott's product is not comparable to Marcal's Small Steps products (if you haven't tried it, they have great products including toilet paper that doesn't "work" well and tissues that are too scratchy to use on your face), they should do fine with it. That is, as long as they don't sell it in a noisy bag.
What about people with fancy
What about people with fancy toilet paper holders? Will they still be able to use them?
this is bad for us teachers
this is bad for us teachers that use them for class projects
Oh, those greedy
Oh, those greedy corporations! Now they're trying to screw me out of my paper tube!
If they get rid of the ones
If they get rid of the ones in paper towels what will I use to fake beat my wife with...
wrapping paper tubes, (don't
wrapping paper tubes,
(don't get the extra big ones, those might actually hurt)
This stuff already exists in
This stuff already exists in "developing" countries that "don't care about the environment", like China, and has for more than 20 years. The real reason is making tubes for toilet paper is more expensive, and serves no real purpose except to make the rolling faster and easier, a feature poorer people do not want to pay for. Watch the price of toilet paper stay stagnant or increase while they cut their own costs.