Wilton laundry pods

Source: Wilton

Patchouli and Jasmine have hit shelves at Sainsbury’s (rsp: £8.50/22 pods)

Eco-friendly cleaning brand Wilton has added a range of plastic-free laundry pods.

Two variants wrapped in paper packaging – Patchouli and Jasmine – have hit shelves at Sainsbury’s (rsp: £8.50/22 pods). They will roll into Booths next month.

The unique powdered format enabled the brand to use “much nicer ingredients that are much kinder to the environment”, said Wilton. 

Co-founder Sam Whigham explained liquid pods often contained a chemical called monoethanolamine, which doesn’t biodegrade, “to stop the film from being attacked by the liquid”.

“It’s basically a synthetic base and quite a harsh chemical.”

Wilton’s new lines, which contain “an oxygen bleaching agent”, work “just as well – if not better – than some of the liquid versions out there”, Whigham added.

Wilton MD and co-founder Michael Perry said this was “an opportunity to tackle a big unknown issue in the laundry category”.

The fragrance-led supplier made its supermarket debut last April, when four of its laundry SKUs – Laundry Liquid Cedarwood, Laundry Liquid Jasmine, Fabric Conditioner Cedarwood and Fabric Conditioner Jasmine (rsp: £7.95/one litre) – rolled into Sainsbury’s Local stores, followed by the retailer’s supermarkets from May as part of its Future Brands scheme.

The launch of its plastic-free pods coincides with Persil relaunching its 3 in 1 capsules in plastic-free packaging – a move it claims will save over 1,000 tonnes of plastic annually.