🎪 Pitch Up, Chill Out… and Reduce Plastic!

There’s nothing more disheartening on a beautiful, green campsite than a visit to the rubbish bins to find badly recycled rubbish, or worse, bin bags overflowing with plastic bottles, plastic cutlery, and cling film flapping in the breeze like some sort of sad campsite bunting. It's one thing that's sure to dampen my (most always) joyful camping spirits.

At Pitch Up and Chill, we believe camping and glamping should be carefree and kind to the planet. That's not to say we're doing everything right yet. No preachy vibes here for sure! Recycling and refuse can sometimes be a source of family friction when we're on our travels, because it seems to be far more important to me than anyone else in the family. Let's face it, "reduce, re-use and recycle" is not generally top of most teenage boys' minds!

And yes, it's true that we do also stock some plastic products and that these may seem to go against our ethos. It's a fair point. But as we grow as a company and a community, we are actively seeking out more eco-friendly products, more environmentally friendly packaging, as well as ways to empower our fellow campers to go plastic free.

Why Should We Reduce the Use of Plastic?

Not least because we love our green fields green and our waterways clean.

Every year, tonnes of single-use plastic ends up littering the countryside (the natural beauty we all escape to enjoy), harmful microplastics fill our rivers and oceans. And the worst part? Plastics that don't make it to recycling, end up in landfill degrading over YEARS. And microplastics ... I'm not sure we know yet, just how much damage these nasties are doing.

💚 How to Go Plastic Free on Your Camping Trip

So here we go with our top tips for ditching disposables and embracing sustainable swaps. No intent to dictate, just practical planet-loving ideas, from a business and a vanlifer that's on this journey too!

💧 1. Pop a Plastic Free Water Bottle in Your Van

Bin the bottled water habit (and stop ingesting micro plastics) with a reusable, plastic-free water bottle. Generally stainless steel, they keep drinks cooler for longer (and hot ones hotter), and you won’t need to fork out a fiver every time you fancy a sip. You can find a couple of examples here.

🍽️ 2. Pack a Bamboo Picnic Set

Bamboo picnic sets are increasingly visible on the al fresco dining scene. A stylish addition to your picnicware and a whole lot nicer than soggy paper plates dripping a wet chilli across your pitch. We're in love with this bamboo picnic platter, as are many of our friends who have enjoyed a bottle of vino and some meaty camping snacks with us.

🧺 3. What about Wheat Grass?

We're over the moon to have discovered wheat grass (and plastic free) picnicware this year and are currently trialling this gorgeous tumbler set. They are actually incredible for the price - handling hot, cold, dishwashers, microwave - and the guilt freedom, so we'll be looking to introduce more wheat grass into the range very soon!

🍵 4. Switch to Stainless Steel

There are some fabulous enamel coated stainless steel options, from your standard camping mugs and bottles, to some quirkier ones and our favourites, these very pretty (and very popular), hand-painted tumblers.

🛒 5. Swap Cling for Reuseable Containers

As you pack your camping snacks and drinks, don't forget to pack reusable containers for any leftovers to avoid the need for cling. There's often no need to go out and buy new, consider re-using biscuit and confectionary tins, margarine tubs and jam jars.

♻️ 6. Replace Plastic Pitch Decor with Upcycled, Fabric Bunting & Strings

If you're a keen follower of all things Pitch Up And Chill, you'll have noticed we're big fans of pitch decor. The plastic bunting may well be waterproof, but there's sadly nothing eco-friendly about it. We prefer the feel good factor we get from buying Fair Trade, recycled sari-fabric bunting and strings.

🌞 Ready to Camp the Plastic-Free Way?

Reducing plastic doesn’t mean huge sacrifices, it just means a bit of rethinking and switching is required. A few smart swaps and you’ll be well on your way to achieving plastic-free-pitch-perfection!

So this year, let’s make a pact and leave the plastic behind. Your future self, fellow campers and most importantly, the planet, will thank you. 💚