We are thrilled to now be B Corp Certified, working to a business model whch prioritises People and Planet before Profit, read about our B Corp journey here. We have spent years perfecting our pioneering plant-based paints and we are proud of the product we have created using gentle chemistry and a lot of dedication to making a more sustainable paint! We believe we are pioneers in creating natural paints using plant-based ingredients instead of petrochemical derived products. When you decide to use natural paint, you are making more than a colour choice, a paint choice, a fashion choice or even a lifestyle choice – you too are choosing to make a difference. Thank you. We believe that is not about what you say that makes a company sustainable it is what you actually do and so for us it is all about how paint is made, what raw materials it contains and what impact it has on our buildings, our health, our nature and our planet. We know how our paint is made and we care about every aspect which we are delighted to share with you. We would really like everyone else to do the same. So to start with basics we declare all the ingredients that go into our paint and we would expect any like minded paint company to do exactly the same. If they don’t I wonder why they don’t? It is not what we say that is sustainable but what we do that is truly sustainable. It's TIME for CHANGE We are Lifting the Lid on mainstream paint. We encounter a great deal of misunderstanding about paint. It is a complicated business making paint, but it is also one of the few supplies in my interior design work where so little is volunteered about how it is made and what the wider effects of that are. It matters a great deal to our clients, and we believe to humanity. How are we pioneers in plant-based paint making? Because we are innovating We have long known that a climate crisis is approaching and the only way to avert a crisis is to act. When Edward realised what a dirty business paint making was he sought suppliers of base paints and pigments who would tell him how the paint was made and what it was made from. After a long search, Edward Bulmer Natural Paint teamed up with a German company called AURO. As pioneers in the use of gentle chemistry AURO have been making paint for over 30 years without effecting the environment. Both companies are committed to developing sustainable products which means finding plant-based alternatives to plastic binders, azo dyes and nasty chemicals. It is exciting to be part of a paint revolution, not only in the way that we sell and deliver paint to our customers, but also by fundamentally changing the way we make paint without depleting the planets resources. It is a much simpler process too! Because we are protecting biodiversity We are a small company but we have very big ideas about how to make paint differently. It is not easy or cheap to make good quality natural paint and it has taken years of scientific research and trials to find the perfect combination of raw materials to make a top quality paint which is durable, easy to use and does not cost the earth. The Edward Bulmer Natural Paint brand is born out of our commitment to the environment and to protect biodiversity. It took Edward a while to realise that modern paint was effectively made from plastic and that microplastics comprised up to 15% of some paints. We are already beginning to see the effect of plastics in our oceans and it is estimated that over 180,000 tonnes of microplastics from paint end up in our rivers and oceans every year. This is a mamouth 6 times more than cosmetics – yet we have banned the use of microplastics in cosmetics? Now we know these microplastics are entering the food chain and so they are not only destroying nature but will potentially become a health hazard – do you want microplastics for dinner! Because we are paint for people and planet Our base white paint and natural pigments are currently manufactured in Germany and it is only the shipping from Germany that generates any carbon. We are planning to build a factory in the UK which will negate this and our business model is to set up small manufacturing facilities in all our markets. It does not make ecological sense to transport paint around the world to customers, we want to make it close to their doors which will reduce the carbon impact of our brand. The way AURO make our base paint is fundamentally different. There is no retort chemistry, no embodied energy, no high temperatures, no barrels of microbeads imported from China, no tankers of shale gas imported from the US, involved in making natural paint. We take natural raw materials which are responsibly sourced and mixed to create a wonderfully opaque base white coat in which the natural earth and mineral pigments magically sit to bring the paint alive. Because we do not produce any toxic waste We have long known that a climate crisis is approaching and the only way to avert a crisis is to act. For every litre of modern paint made it is estimated that 30 litres of toxic waste is put into our planet. Annually the paint industry creates over 50,000 tonnes of toxic waste, this is the weight of over 50,000 full grown Rhino’s – which is double the current Rhino population in the world. Together with AURO we never work destructively, we work positively being inspired by the world we see around us. We try to reflect the earth’s beauty in all we do and use its resources mindfully. We give back, we never just take. This means that our paints and other products are as environmentally friendly as we can make them, in fact they’re so gentle they’re compostable! But we never sit on our laurels, our team of gentle chemists are always striving to improve and find the next innovation. Because we care Accountable sustainability is in our DNA. Edward (Founder) is an active eco campaigner, hosting an annual Spring Greens Fair at his HQ in Herefordshire and chairing one of the UK’s most forward thinking foundations on sustainable living. He is passionate about making our living spaces healthier for us, our buildings and our environment. For the past 10 years he has been working with specialist paint manufacturers to develop beautiful coloured paints which are both safer and healthier by returning to non toxic paint formulations. Both mainstream and premium plastic (acrylic) paints are largely made from petro chemicals derived from refined crude oil. Emma (Director) has worked in waste-to-energy infrastructure for 25+ years and has pushed the construction for one of the largest waste-to-energy plants in the UK over the finish line. Emma has turned her passion for problem solving and sustainable innovation to paint! Fundamentally their concern for the environment is because they want their children to live on this amazing planet too! Greenwashing Beware! As we make the amazing transition towards a carbon free environment and take on the responsibility of protecting nature’s biodiversity for the future, there is inevitable ‘Greenwashing‘ in every industry and the paint industry is no exception. Every sensible company is getting onto the bandwagon of doing everything, making everything and selling everything that is ‘eco friendly’, ‘sustainable’ , ‘environmentally friendly’, ‘carbon neutral’, ‘vegan’, ‘organic’, ‘ethical’. The paint industry has adopted all these prefixes and more, declaring that their paint is ‘water-based’, ‘low VOC’, ‘no VOC’ and ‘VOC free. Yet in many instances, nothing has changed except to make these claims louder and clearer and those with the biggest budgets are well heard and nobody questions their slogans. We say – always ask for a full declaration of ingredients before buying. Any reputable company should provide a full list plus description of ingredients and where they are sourced. You can reference our list of synthetic ingredients if you want to understand them. Click HERE for the list. Greenwashing - is it a big problem? Words by Edward Bulmer Greenwashing - is it a big problem? When choosing paint, it’s becoming evident that the contents might not always be exactly what it says on the tin! Many claim to be ‘eco-friendly’ or contain low levels of VOC’s (Volatile Organic Compounds) but when you look further, there is more to it than meets the eye. In this industry and at this present time it’s so important to get the facts right, we know how much greenwashing is out there and so we have always strived to give our customers as much information as possible in order for them to make an informed decision. So we thought the first thing we would address is greenwashing and ask how big of a problem it really is within the paint industry? Who better to write about this than our founder, Edward Bulmer himself, read on to hear more about the struggle in navigating a world and industry full of greenwashing. READ NOW "Our paints are not only inspired and created by nature, but they are backed up by careful research and centuries of proven performance. When you decide to buy our paints you are getting more than just a beautiful finish, you are getting passion and knowledge from one of this country’s leading interior designers." Emma Bulmer