Remanufacturing is one way of reducing our overwhelming need for new plastic to be made, thus reducing the amount of plastic that is recycled and sent to landfills, or thrown away into the sea. But what if we could actually make the plastic disappear without putting it in the ground or chucking it into the ocean?

It would certainly help, considering the millions of plastic bottles, knives, forks, cups and toner cartridges that ultimately end up causing more harm than they do good as a result of our inability to dispose of them once we’re finished with them.

Our prayers have been answered. Scientists claim to have discovered a naturally occurring enzyme which has the ability to digest some of the most common plastics that we use that pollute our planet.

Although the enzyme was created completely by accident, it could be the answer to a lot of our current plastic problems. The enzyme is proven to be successful at breaking down PET (polyethylene terephthalate) which is used in the plastic for soft drinks bottles and many other single use plastic items.

According to reports, the mutant enzyme takes a few days to begin breaking down plastic – much faster than the centuries it can take in the oceans, and scientists are confident that this can be sped up even more, enabling it to be used on a large-scale process against plastic.

What this means is that once plastic has been made into its final form, it can be broken back down again and remade into another plastic item, therefore reducing the need to dig up more oil, and eliminating the plastic pollution problem that we have.

Who knows what the future of plastic looks like – all we know is that plastic is a problem NOW.

Buying remanufactured toner cartridges is one way that you can help the planet and reduce the production of single-use plastic.

If you want to know more about the problems that plastic can cause, feel free to e-mail me any questions at lauren@greener-side.co.uk