Planet Ark has endorsed HP Australia’s Instant Ink subscription service—the first endorsement for a print service.

HP’s Instant Ink subscription provides users an easy way to recycle their cartridges—and in turn—reduce their impact on the environment.

The endorsement is timely as new research by IDC reveals that 25 million ink and toner cartridges were shipped to Australia in 2020 with fewer than one in five cartridges being recycled.

The research says COVID-19 lockdowns saw cartridge recycling volumes reach just 19% last year with limited access to collection boxes at retailers and businesses impacting overall uptake.

HP Australia and New Zealand managing director Mike Boyle says “HP has challenged itself to not just close the loop in our manufacturing, but also to make it easier than ever for consumers to embrace more sustainable practices when it comes to our products.

“Cartridge recycling is critically important for the protection of our environment, and we’re proud that our Instant Ink subscription—which includes a free, automated recycling service—has been recognised by Planet Ark as making cartridge recycling easier and more accessible to all Australians,” Boyle enthuses.

“We are proud to endorse HP’s Instant Ink subscription service as a circular economy solution. It has a lower carbon footprint when compared to traditional retail distribution models and will increase recycling of valuable materials through its free recycling service,” Planet Ark chief executive officer Paul Klymenko says.

“At Planet Ark, we see subscription services that offer products as services as an innovative business model for the future. Subscription services incentivise companies to design products that are more efficient and built to last, while also making them accountable for the repurposing of their products at their end of life,” he says.

Klymenko adds: “This reduces impact on our natural resources and environment.”

In Australia, HP works with Close the Loop and Planet Ark to repurpose used ink cartridges and save them from going to landfill.

Recycled content can then be reused, working to keep these materials in circulation for as long as possible and out of landfills.

An IDC research has found that recycling rates of ink cartridges are expected to increase from 19% to 27% in the next four to five years as economies recover and cartridge recycling participation increases.

HP believes programs such as HP Instant Ink, which offer simple and free ways for users to recycle their empty cartridges, will be key to supporting this increase.

HP’s Instant Ink service, which was launched in April 2021, is a monthly subscription delivering ink to users’ doors based on the number of pages they print.

The device-as-a-service model is a critical piece of HP’s global circular economy sustainability strategy, offering a simple and free way for users to recycle their empty cartridges, says HP.

HP’s Instant Ink delivers recycling satchels to users as their cartridges run low, allowing the empty cartridges to be mailed directly to the Close the Loop recycling facility, where they are recycled with zero waste.