KiwiFil and the environment
At KiwiFil, we are really tree-huggers at heart. We are doing the best we can to make the production of filament as environmentally friendly as we can. Yes, we know that all companies say that these days, and most of it is just empty talks and "greenwashing". However, in our case, making the most sustainable 3D printing filament possible, was why we started KiwiFil.
In 2025 we reached our long-term goal to use only recycled plastics (although we may have some old stock of virgin PLA filament for sale, but it will all be phased out). On this page you can read about the environmental impact of our 3D printing filaments. Our main filament extruder is a re-purposed drinking straw machine, and most of our other equipment is used or re-purposed. Our boxes and spools are locally made from mostly recycled paper, and they can also be returned for re-use.
Environmental impact at a glance
To make a 1 kg spool of recycled KiwiFil rPLA pro filament (including the box and all-paper spool), the CO2 equivalent footprint is approximately 0.5 kg. That is equivalent to driving an average New Zealand car for 3 km (2 miles).
(Sources for all this data are found further down on this page)
Environmental impact from PLA filament
PLA stands for Polylactic Acid and is a plastic material that is made from plants. PLA is commonly made from corn, sugar beets, and sugarcane. The PLA in the KiwiFil filament is mainly made from corn.
Because it is made from plants, does that mean it has zero environmental impact? No, nothing has zero environmental impact. The sugar beets and sugarcane have to be grown, harvested, and processed into lactic acid, which is then polymerized into to PLA plastic. Despite this, we still think it is better to use plants than crude oil to make 3D printing filament.
We only use recycled PLA, and it is mainly post-industrial waste from the manufacturing of food packaging. However, the PLA still has to be transported, melted, and extruded into filament, so even recycled material has an environmental footprint.
CO2 footprint from PLA
The CO2 equivalent footprint from 1 kg of KiwiFil recycled rPLA filament is about 0.5 kg. To put that number perspective, 0.5 kg CO2 is the same amount of CO2 that the average car in New Zealand will emit when driven as little as 3 km. This means if you drive your average petrol or diesel car the store to buy one spool of filament and drive back home again, and your store is further than 1.5 km from your house, your driving will have the same or larger footprint than your filament. That is some food for thought, we think.
Of that 0.8 kg pf CO2 equivalent:
0.1 kg comes from the transport of the PLA raw material from overseas (there is no PLA raw material manufacturing in New Zealand)
0.2 kg comes from electricity use (2 kWh of average New Zealand electricity mix)
0.1 kg from the mostly recycled cardboard in the spool and box
There is no PLA raw material manufacturing in New Zealand, so the raw material (even if recycled) has to be transported to New Zealand. Most PLA raw material is produced in the USA and China. Sea transport is very efficient, and adds about 0.1 kg of CO2 per 1 kg of plastic.
The recycled PLA is melted and extruded into filament, which is a process that uses electricity. The average New Zealand electricity mix has a carbon footprint of about 0.1 kg CO2 equivalent per kWh. We estimate that it takes about 2 kWh to process recycled PLA into filament, which includes shredding, drying, and extrusion.
The spool and the box made from mostly recycled cardboard, together with the bag and labels, add about 0.1 kg of CO2 equivalent.
In addition to these emissions, there will also be CO2 equivalent emissions from your use of your 3D printer. The electricity consumption will vary greatly with different printers, so it is difficult to estimate it. There will also be some emissions from the transport from the store or the warehouse to your 3D printer room. These emissions will vary greatly depending on the mode of transport. We courier or freight companies to ship the filament. Some of these are carbon neutral, like New Zealand Post. There will also be some emissions from other manufacturing related activities, such as making coffee in the lunch room, but we currently don't have a good way of estimating these emissions.
Because of the variation in the total carbon footprint for your particular spool of filament, and the uncertainty in some of the calculations, we take the 0.5 kg number and we double that to be on the safe side. We offset 1 kg of CO2 for every 1 kg spool of filament we sell, using Gold Standard certified programs. In addition to that, we also support the tree planting and the rescue of the unique New Zealand birds Kiwi and Kakapo, which you can read about here. We also encourage you use online tools to calculate your own carbon footprint and see how you can improve it. Below are a few carbon footprint tools. You can also offset your emissions using Gold Standard certified programs, just like we do.
Future Fit by GenLess: https://www.futurefit.nz/
Carbon Footprint: https://www.carbonfootprint.com/calculator.aspx
Climate Hero: https://co2-calculator.climatehero.me/
Sources:
CO2 footprint of cardboard: https://www.corrugated.org/carbon-footprint-calculator/
Emissions from average New Zealand cars: https://www.stuff.co.nz/motoring/113716572/the-cleanest-and-dirtiest-car-brands-in-new-zealand
Emissions from New Zealand electricity: https://lowcarbonpower.org/region/New_Zealand
CO2 footprint from cardboard: https://www.procarton.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/Carbon-Footprint-Report-2019.pdf
All-paper spools & box
Our filament comes on all-paper spools. Both boxes and spools are made here in New Zealand, and made from recycled fibers to whatever extent is possible without sacrificing the function and strength. When you have used all the filament, just chuck the spool in the recycling bin to become new cardboard. The box can be turned inside-out and be reused for other purposes, or it can be recycled, of course. Or even better - it can be returned to us and we will re-use it!
When we started KiwiFil, we did what any new company would do - we looked at our competitors! Most other brands uses heavy plastic spools, but we found that incredibly wasteful. A few manufacturers use paper spools (and more and more of them are switching over), and we decided to do the same. The paper spool also weighs less, so you will pay less for shipping. We put our own twist on the design with the colourful jungle artwork on the 1 kg spools. If you look closely, you will spot native New Zealand birds and plants hiding in the grass.
Both the 1 kg spools and the 250 g spools are made locally, with several small business in the supply chain. The spools are made from recycled paper to whatever extent possible.
The labels and the card inside the box or bag are printed around the corner from the KiwiFil factory by John, Ben, and Lindsey at Trade Colour Print. We literally walk around the building to pick them up. Professional bookbinder Lindsey helped us with a lot of the prototyping when we developed the spools, and he also manufactured the first batch of spools. When our filament became too popular for hand manufacturing, we went to another local supplier - Quick Brown Box, who now makes our spool sides and our boxes.
The spool sides and boxes are die cut, and the industrial sized die is also manufactured in the neighborhood by Fine Forms. The clever young lady and second generation die manufacturer Monique was instrumental in making our all-paper spools come true. She die-cut thousands of spool sides by hand for us, and she is probably thankful that we have bigger machines doing the work these days.
Our first spool design used solid fibre board, but it simply wasn't strong enough. A changeover to corrugated cardboard - still sporting the same colourful print - resulted in a spool that was both more rugged and lighter weight.
Our spool design isn't only lighter and less wasteful than the regular plastic design that most of our competitor use, it also supports local businesses. All of these things are important to us.
Did you find a mistake on this website? Or information that is outdated? Please let me know! It is hard work to keep websites updated, and I appreciate if you tell me when something doesn't look right. Thank you! // Eva