When purchasing cleaning products, we apply the same
criteria as we do furniture. We check to
see that the overall process is responsible to the earth and that the product
lives up to its claims. As you know,
problems with conventional cleaners are that they consist of chemicals that
can act as endocrine disruptors, cause damage to aquatic life and contain by-products that don’t biodegrade soon enough
to name a few.
While they quickly degrease, shine and dust they slowly damage our
bodies and the earth.
So…here are our picks.
Method-
This company is the most design friendly.
Products are designed by Joshua Handy so you don’t need to hide them in
a cupboard. Dr. Michael Braungart,
renowned environmental chemist and co-author of Cradle to Cradle, guides
product development process. This
company believes, as we do, that business is a powerful agent of change and that
you can have good design while being a responsible citizen- environmentally and
socially. We personally love that they
offer antibacterial options that are partnered with CleanWell- for those who insist on
the antibacterial cleaners. We think they can do without the disposable
cleaning cloths but try their Dryer
Cloths which are meant to be used twice.
Seventh
Generation- We really appreciate the transparency of this company. They acknowledge where they need to make
improvements and set goals to achieve them.
Favorite products are the Lemongrass and Clementine
Dish Soap and Natural 4x Laundry
Detergent.
Ecover-
Their factories are in Belgium and France but we are hoping that demand in
North America will lead them to build a plant here
soon. Their buildings are covered in
succulents and are constructed with renewable materials. The most easily accessible products here in
the states are the dishwashing detergents.
Don’t be fooled by the lack of bubbles.
It gets the job done!
Ecos- This
family owned company is another one that does a good job at disclosing its
processes and aims to be a responsible company, not just turn out
environmentally responsible products.
The Lemongrass Laundry
Detergent is perfect for the unisex household.
Bio-Kleen- Another
family owned company, BioKleen differs
from the others in that it does not use Sodium Lauryl Sulfates but does not
disclose its sourcing and manufacturing processes. From experience we can tell you that the
laundry detergent and dishwashing liquid work great, but we hope for more
transparency in the future.
Don’t want to have a giant plastic bottle of dish soap
sitting on your counter? Choose your
favorite product from above and transfer it into one of these here,
or here. You can even bring it to your local co-op to
be weighed and then refilled with your soap of choice.
Happy chores! ~anneliese
