Prepaid Visa card provider, gohenry has launched the Eco Card, a biodegradable debit card.
Aimed at its core market of 6-18 year-olds and their parents, the card comes as research carried out by Beano for Brands suggests 40% of 6-to-14-year olds feel they have a direct role in helping to protect the environment.
The Eco Card is made from a plastic substitute called polylactic acid (PLA), which is created from renewable materials such as field corn. The material is biodegradable and non-toxic if incinerated and breaks down within six months versus the 400+ years it takes its PVC equivalent.
According to Statista, there were almost 900m Visa cards in existence in the final quarter of 2019.
The prepaid card provider has also partnered with Eden Reforestation Projects, promising to plant a new tree every time a new Eco Card is used for the first time.
Eva Orahim of Eden Reforestation Projects said, “encouraging eco-conscious purchases at a young age is key to developing a greener mindset and ensuring the future of our planet”.
The gohenry brand was launched in the UK in 2012 offers its service around a prepaid Visa debit card and app. The service is targeted at 6-18 year-olds and the app includes parental controls with the aim of helping young customers learn good money habits.
Speaking via a press release, gohenry founder, Louise Hill said that the firm’s Eco Card is designed to “give our young customers the opportunity to go greener, while still taking part in the digital economy. Our aim is to expand our Eco Card range in the future, with the ultimate goal of printing all of our cards on the greenest material possible.”
