Cloth vs disposable nappies — which is better for the planet? Discover the real environmental impact and how cloth nappies reduce waste, water use, and landfill.
When it comes to nappies, every parent wants the best for their baby — but what about the planet?
Disposables are convenient, but their environmental cost is huge. Cloth nappies, on the other hand, are reusable, washable, and built to last. Let’s break down the real environmental impact of both.
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Disposable Nappies: The Landfill Problem
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An average child will use 6,000+ disposable nappies before toilet training.
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That’s around 1 tonne of waste per child.
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Disposable nappies can take 300–500 years to break down, sitting in landfill for generations.
And it’s not just the nappies — think about all the single-use plastic packaging too.
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Cloth Nappies: Reuse Again and Again
Modern cloth nappies can be washed and reused hundreds of times. Even when you factor in water and electricity for washing, the environmental footprint is far smaller than disposables.
Our Cloth Nappies 2.0 are designed to last from newborn through to toilet training — and often get passed down to siblings too.
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Water & Energy Use
Yes, cloth nappies use water for washing. But here’s the reality:
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Water use is minimal compared to the environmental cost of producing disposables.
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Washing every 1–2 days can be easily managed in a regular household routine.
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Line drying is eco-friendly, using the sun’s natural energy.
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End of Life
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Disposables: Always end up in landfill.
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Cloth: Can be reused for multiple children, repurposed as cleaning cloths, and even recycled in some textile programs.
The bottom line?
Every family’s journey is different, but cloth nappies offer a real way to reduce your footprint. By swapping just one disposable a day for cloth, you save over 365 nappies from landfill each year.
Small changes really do add up — for your baby, your budget, and our planet.