pBone Music: Making plastic instruments carbon-neutral

As part of our exploration into the sustainability of musical instruments, we spoke to pBone Music to find out how their plastic instruments are made sustainably.

Sustainable advice from a company best known for plastic instruments like pBone and pTrumpet might seem a little strange.

But sometimes plastic makes perfect sense. Here are some of the ways that we are trying to reduce our impact on the environment and give the next generation of music-makers a sustainable start to their music education.

Not all plastic is created equal: our instruments are made from tough, lightweight and recyclable ABS plastic. They are built to last and designed for the school environment: for beginner brass and wind players, which means less expensive repairs and replacements and a lighter carbon cost for delivery.

Our goal is for young musicians to progress from instruments like pTrumpet and pCornet to premium brass models. But although plastic may not appear to be environmentally-friendly at first glance, the manufacturing processes for brass instruments are far more carbon intensive for the environment, involving nasty materials like nickel and lead. Heavy instruments being transported long distances means a bigger carbon footprint, and cheap, poor-quality brass instruments are difficult to repair, meaning more instruments and more waste.

Carbon offsetting is one method used to combat issues around transporting and manufacturing products. In 2020, pBone Music became the first instrument manufacturer to produce only carbon-neutral instruments, working with Carbon Footprint to independently assess and audit our business. This allowed us to offset our carbon each year, funding projects to provide fuel-efficient stoves in Darfur and support wildlife habitats and reforestation efforts in Kenya. 

We understand that offsetting carbon is not a complete solution. We took the results of our assessment, and research conducted by Keele University, to further our sustainability goals within the business. We have cut single-use plastics from our product line and packaging and changed the material for our nylon bags. Our recycled cardboard boxes are designed to save space, which means fewer deliveries, and our pCorder case can be used as a “box for life”: the ideal sustainable solution for the world’s first carbon neutral recorder.

Speaking of packaging, we use suppliers in Derbyshire and Birmingham, supporting the local economy while cutting down on transport. The mouthpieces used on our instruments are made by a female-led manufacturing team in Hinckley, Leicestershire, and our classroom instruments pBuzz and pCorder are manufactured in Mansfield, Nottinghamshire.  

As our business grows, we are constantly reviewing our environmental impact. We are working collaboratively with other manufacturers whose products we offer in the education market to reduce waste and emissions. We are partnering with music hubs to recycle old and unwanted instruments. In areas like Central Bedfordshire, we have breathed new life into beginning brass instruments through our servicing and repair programme.

We will continue to challenge ourselves to do more…and we actively encourage all who we work with to demand better. Asking suppliers and those in the music industry for certification, for their sustainable policies, for more transport and recycling options will raise standards across the board and make the music education journey more sustainable.

Don’t forget to visit the This Is Not A Rehearsal webpage to explore more news, training & events, resources and research to support you on your sustainability journey. If you’d like to stay up to date with training and resources related to the climate crisis within the music education sector, click here to sign up for our ‘This Is Not A Rehearsal’ monthly newsletter.