Within the sex toy industry, a wave of companies are proving that pleasure and planet-consciousness can go hand in hand. From vegan-friendly toys to vibrators made from ocean plastic, here are the brands pushing the industry in a more sustainable direction.

The Natural Love Company

The Cornwall-based Natural Love Company creates eco-friendly luxury sex toys designed to feel as normal to buy as anything else in your bathroom cabinet.

 Founded by friends Barney Walters and Ben Foster, the brand set out to reshape the way people think about the category entirely.

“Two men in their mid-twenties starting a sex toy brand was quite the laughing matter around the family dinner table.

“But the industry had a negative connotation and felt very taboo. There wasn’t a very open conversation around it,” Barney said.

Being a long-time vegan, Walters saw an opportunity to bring in the environmental values he already prioritised in everyday life. 

“I come from a mindset of sustainability, whether that’s recycling, reusing, or veganism. So as the company grew, it felt natural to bring those values into it.”

The brand has since built out a considered environmental offering: plastic-free packaging, natural materials, a partnership with The Vegan Society, and a tree planted with every product sold. 

Since 2022, all best-selling products have been made with a recycled ocean plastic internal core and smooth silicone covering.

 Their ‘Second Coming’ scheme also allows customers to send back old sex toys, of any brand, for free recycling.

Walters believes this kind of commitment will soon become the industry baseline. 

“Sustainability sits on a spectrum. Ten years ago a lot of companies weren’t even on it. Now most brands are somewhere along that line and consumers expect them to be.”

Ohhcean

Ohhcean takes a similarly material-first approach – turning ocean-bound plastic into sex toys through a partnership with recycling organisation #tide, which collects plastic waste from coastal regions and landfills before processing it into usable material.

The resulting range – a magic wand, a G-spot vibrator, and a body vibrator – is made from that reclaimed plastic and finished with a blue shaded, silicone outer layer. 

But getting there wasn’t straightforward.

“The ocean-bound plastic reacts differently from virgin plastic when melted and put into moulds,” said product expert, Amina Jenayah.

 “It took more testing and time to learn how the material behaved – which wasn’t easy, but made it all the more satisfying when we did make a beautiful, safe and pleasure-inducing product.”

For Jenayah, the appeal of the industry was precisely its potential for impact.

 “Being in an industry that has the potential to make change seemed like the perfect way to combine a passion for the environment with a passion for inspiring a more playful sex life for everyone.”

But the brand’s longer-term ambition goes beyond materials.

 “We don’t produce just to produce,” she said. 

“It’s incredibly important that what we make is something people enjoy and will enjoy for many years to come.”

In an industry not known for longevity, durability may be the most radical sustainability statement of all.