RideGuard opts for 100% recycled plastic manufacturing

British mudguard label RideGuard will now produce 100% of its catalogue from recycled materials.

Moving with a fast growing swell away from adding to the mountains of existing plastics, RideGuard owner Ben Gaby said “the bike industry has a long way to go before it can really live up to the ‘environmentally friendly’ tagline.

Having produced custom products for the likes of Specialized, Hope and Orange, among others, Gaby’s business currently produces 23 designs for mountain bikes and the rear PF2 and CP1 road mudguards. The up coming BFG MTB guard will also follow suit.

“We’re working to minimise our products’ impact, from sourcing the most eco-friendly materials, involving ourselves in local community activities and encouraging our customers to recycle our products at their end of life,” adds Gaby.

“We’ve been working closely with organisations like Trash Free Trails and Surfers Against Sewage to educate and take action – riders are getting more switched on and change is happening. Manufacturing locally not only reduces our environmental footprint, it also allows us to have a closer relationship with suppliers. Having a skilled workforce on our doorstep makes R&D and quality checks much easier, plus we can move quickly with new designs.”

Plastic takes between 500 to 1,000 years to break down. Though the government has just announced its plans for a Depost Return System in the fight against plastic, there is otherwise very little funding for clean up efforts.