Do you keep your receipts?

February 16th, 2018

Maybe you shouldn’t!

 

Today’s blog is by Margaret Stewart, Manager of HR and Administration at SafeSourcing Inc..

Many of us use our debit or credit cards every day and by the end of the week, wind up with a stack of receipts. My receipts wind up cluttering my purse and pockets until I make it to a trash can, because the majority of the time I don’t even need them. While having so many receipts was previously a minor nuisance, after learning more about what it takes to make those receipts, avoiding receipts all together may be a better way to go from now on.

Receipts are typically made of thermal paper and are coated in different chemicals that react to heat, which causes the print to appear on the receipt. One such chemical used in thermal paper is Bisphenol A (BPA), which has been noted as a health and environmental hazard. This certainly makes me want to turn down a receipt next time I’m offered one, but sometimes a receipt is necessary.

Last October, a chemical plant in China made headlines that it would be shutting down for environmental reasons for at least several months. That plant produced a chemical that is used in thermal paper and it is estimated that it provided 70% of the world’s supply. At first glance, many might think this has no bearing on their lives, but it may very well affect every one of us.

When that particular Chinese plant shut down, thermal production paper slowed across the market. While other producers of the needed chemicals stepped up production, they struggle to make up for the difference, and that affects pricing. As prices rise, retailers begin looking for new suppliers or alternatives. One of the best ways to do this is to implement your procurement partner in your searches. They can assist not only with cost avoidance, but also with research of thermal paper alternatives, the effects thermal paper on health or the environment, or what it would take to make your point of sale digital.

For more information on how SafeSourcing can help your organization avoid cost increases or on finding new alternative technologies, or on our Risk Free trial program, please contact a SafeSourcing Customer Service representative. We have an entire team ready to assist you today.

 

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