What are Sustainable Toys, and Should You be Buying Them?
Here’s a scary thought – hardly any of our elders were alive during the pre-plastic age of children’s toys. Plastic dolls started picking up in the 1930s, and by 1960, we already had legends like Lego, Barbie, Fisher Price and Play-Doh. Apart from iPads, today’s toys haven’t changed all that much.
Plastic still reigns supreme among toy makers – why? Firstly, it’s extremely durable. Kids can smash, throw, and even bury plastic toys with little consequence. They are also relatively cheap to make and easy to transport. The only problem is, you can never throw them away.
If you throw plastic in the dustbin with everything else, it will take forever to degrade and likely end up polluting an ocean or killing a bird someday. Many of the big brands have woken up to this problem and are slowly starting to make their toys more eco-friendly.
Recyclable Toys vs Toys Made From Recycled Materials
In 2022, Mattel released a Barbie doll collection made from 90% recycled plastic, which they sourced from polluted areas near rivers and beaches. This is an example of a toy made from recycled materials. Mattel also launched a special “Nothin’ but Paper” edition of UNO cards in 2021. This is an example of a toy made from recyclable materials. What’s the difference?
Recyclable materials, such as paper UNO cards, put the responsibility on the user. You can recycle them if you want to, but at the end of the day, they could still end up in landfills. The difference with recycled materials is that the manufacturer has already done the recycling part. Toys made from recycled plastic still have a smaller carbon footprint overall, even if they end up in rubbish dumps.
Other Types of Sustainable Toys
Wooden Toys
Trying to judge whether a plastic toy is eco-friendly or not can be a nightmare. Brands are not often transparent about where they get their materials from, even if they claim to be sustainable. To avoid this dilemma, you could just skip the plastic entirely and go for good old wooden toys.
Many studies support the psychological benefits of interacting with wooden objects and environments. Playing with wooden blocks, for example, can be a calming and sensory experience for kids. Wooden toys also tend to be simple, which promotes more creative and open-ended play. Look for the FSC stamp on wooden toys for peace of mind that they come from sustainably managed forests.
Gardening Toys
Getting children to spend time outside these days is more difficult than ever, but exploring nature is still important for kids. You don’t strictly need toys for this, but they do help. And there’s nothing more eco-friendly than gardening!
Gifting your kids things like seed-growing kits, mini gardening tools, or even an Envirokid Bug Box can help them start building an appreciation for nature from a young age. Let them get their hands as dirty as possible! When shopping for kids’ gardening stuff, try to buy metal or wood where you can. Not all plastics age well outdoors and tend to break with heavy use.
Locally-Made Toys
Most of the toys we buy in South Africa come from China, which is over 11 000 km away. Europe and the Americas are not any closer. All this transportation adds a big chunk to a toy’s carbon footprint. Even if you’re buying plastic toys, buying them from a local maker is much better for the planet.
South African-made toys are also likely to resonate with our kids more and offer a unique playtime experience not found anywhere else. Christmas markets and street vendors are a good place to start looking for local toys. Here you can find handmade musical instruments, wire cars, and teddy bears. You could also try online stores like Africars, Stumped, and Toy Project SA.
The Value of Buying Second-Hand
We all love shiny new things but the truth is that kids grow out of stuff pretty quickly. Even the most expensive Christmas presents end up collecting dust, sometimes as soon as a year later. Buying used toys is a much cheaper and more sustainable option, especially for younger kids who won’t know the difference.
We’re not saying get everything second-hand. There’s nothing wrong with spoiling your children when you can. For things that aren’t worth a high price though, gently used items could be the way. Think travel cots, high-chairs, bicycles, play gyms, baby mobiles, kiddies furniture, books, gaming consoles, and sports equipment.
You can usually find these things on Facebook Marketplace or Gumtree or browse online stores like Pr3loved or Hello Bunny. Buying pre-owned toys keeps them in economic circulation for longer and prevents unnecessary waste.
Final Rule: Quality Over Quantity
Even for the most die-hard environmentalists, becoming a parent changes everything. You want to instil good values in your kids but you also don’t want to drive yourself crazy doing it. If buying South African-made toys crafted from 100% recycled materials is not realistic for you right now, that’s okay. A more obtainable goal may be to simply become more conscious of what you buy.
Buying fewer toys, in general, will reduce the amount of waste your family creates. Instead of regularly coming home with cheap dolls from China Mall, consider treating your kids to something new only once or twice a year. That way, you can buy higher-quality items that will last longer. These items can eventually be sold or donated, contributing to a circular economy.
