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SKIN&BLiSS Blog

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Rice Melamine...No One Can Help Everyone but Everyone Can Help Someone

March 6th, 2019 | Interview with Rice by Mark Food 

 

Where does the passion & drive come from that makes RICE such a standout company when it comes to sustainability

 

RICE is all about adding that extra magic to your everyday…about fun, funkiness & functionality! But we work with our hearts as well. It is difficult to say where this drive to be more sustainable comes from. For us it has always been a natural thing to help where we can. Since the very beginning of our company history, Corporate Social Responsibility has been a huge part of the RICE DNA - we believe it is our responsibility to take an active part in important social and environmental issues. It has just been a natural next step for our company to focus more on the environment. Naturally, we know it is impossible for one company to make a great impact by ourselves, but we live by the philosophy that “no one can help everyone, but everyone can help someone.” – whether it be people or the environment… every little bit helps! This credo has been with us since the beginning, and we always try to expand this philosophy to new areas…    

 

How does the pro action of melamine help the environment

 

Melamine is one of our favorite products. The RICE melamine is of high quality. This is of great importance to us due to our focus on reusability and reducing waste. Using melamine for your tableware gives you a product that is hard to break and can sustain tough handling - and at the same time, it gives you a product that is versatile and can be used both inside and out - for lunch or dinner, for picnics, for kids birthday parties and much more. It is a reusable, durable and long-lasting material, and because it is not a disposable material, but can be used again and again, it can be with you for a very long time. 

Rice Melamine Plates

 

What charities do RICE support

 

Our Corporate Social Responsibility policy is a two-legged one. It involves taking active part in social projects all over the world as well as maintaining a responsible production of our products.

 

Social Projects:

 

The first leg in our CSR-policy involves our commitment to various kinds of social projects – both at home here in Denmark, but also in various countries around the world. We’ve started these projects back in 2007 with the most recent one being a collaboration with UNICEF.

 

We started this 3-year collaboration with UNICEF in 2017. The aim was/is a focus on helping children at risk. The first project in 2017 was called “Cups of Hope”, in 2018 the project was called “Hope is Bright”, and for 2019 the project is called “Never Lose Hope”. For every one of the UNICEF projects, we have developed special Hope-products made for the purpose of supporting the work that UNICEF do. For every product sold, we donate 1.5 EUR to UNICEF to support the work they do in crisis areas all over the world.

 

This year, we have started up an old project called Laksyha, where we help support underprivileged children in India getting a higher education. The Lakshya company produces bags for our AW19 collection. All profits from selling these bags go to Lakshya’s commitment to helping underprivileged children getting a higher education.

 

Please see attached list for a full overview of the various projects we have taken active part in over the years.

 

Responsible Production:

 

Aside from actively taking part in various social projects all over the world, our ethical approach to doing business also involves a responsible production. 

 

At RICE, it is very important to us that all of our products are produced with respect for the people that handle them. Most of our products are produced by workers in developing countries, and therefore we make sure that the production – from beginning to end – is handled with the utmost respect for human rights, under safe and healthy working conditions, and without the use of child labor. We choose suppliers, who live up to our ethical standards - and with the use of internationally renowned guidelines, we help them further to improve their working conditions

 

What are the key pieces that we should look for in the RICE range this summer

 

This year we are all about celebrating as RICE turns 21. We call it a RICEaversary, and we call the collection “Happy 21st”. As always it is down to the core of what RICE stands for - Fun, Funky and Functional! The SS19 collection is flowery, summerly and colorful, yet light and natural… All of the 6 new melamine prints are this time cream-based on the inside making them easier to match with other items in your home. The RICEAVERSARY also celebrates a color that has been part of RICE since the very beginning – in many different nuances. The “50 Shades of Pink”-story in the SS19 collection pays tribute to the pink color… it is the color of universal friendship, affection and approachability – and simply because pink is ingrained in the RICE DNA – So much that it for years has been the color of the floors at RICE headquarters. For specific special products, look for our new porcelain series “Everyday Magic Porcelain” – we love it! To top off the celebration, also look for this great, big champagne cooler with the words, “STAY BUBBLY” engraved in it… And naturally all of our “50 shades of pink”-products that come in melamine, disco balls, porcelain and other great items.

 

Is RICE hopeful that more companies will follow in the footsteps of RICE when it comes to sustainable production & ethical working

 

We are proud to be taking a stand on doing ethical business. We try do our very best to improve this effort all the time – both in terms of a responsible production and sustainability, but also in terms of a general ethical approach to doing business. We actually experience that more and more companies around us are already taking a stand on ethical business policies. Just great to see how many companies are acting more and more responsible when it comes to sustainability! And it would be even better if everyone would join the movement. We can only hope for a positive development in this area.