EKOSAK – reusable produce bags

What is working?

-a few weeks ago we were able to source a different supplier for the rope that is used to make an EKOSAK.  This has had a considerable effect producing a bag.

What is not working?

-Trying to find the time in the future to sell the EKOSAK on a regular basis at the local farmers market will be a hassle.  The market is open 8am to 3pm on Saturday.  These hours are for normally allocated for manufacturing.

How do you feel the project if coming?

-I/We feel this project is more successful than we thought it would be.

What are you learning around running a business?

-Time management is clutch.

What are you learning about yourself?

-I enjoy being a small business owner and in charge of the decision making.

EKOSAK – reusable produce bags

What is working?

-this past week has been steady.  We are still meeting our quota in the bag manufacturing department.  Since the Spring Pop-Up shop, we have had a lot of interest in the bags and have fulfilled many orders and made a lot of new connections!

What is not working?

-Sourcing local made fabrics is still a struggle, as we cannot find a local supplier.

How do you feel the project if coming?

-This project is going better than we expected, and didn’t think we would sell as many bags as we have

What are you learning around running a business?

-Making connections (business or just friendly) whether they are local or not is a definite must.

What are you learning about yourself?

-I am learning that working with family is something I enjoy.  Being in business with my mom gives us a lot of quality time together.

EKOSAK – reusable produce bags

What is working?

-This past weekend (March 31^st) my mom I participated in our first vendor sale.  We rented a table (approx. $40) at the Mill Market Spring Pop-up Shop.  We sold many bags, and were able to market our product like one would at a trade show.  Until now, all of our marketing has been Online and word-of-mouth.

What is not working?

-Sourcing lower cost but high-quality materials is an ongoing a struggle.  We want to lower the costs of making an EKOSAK, without compromising the integrity of our brand and image.

How do you feel the project if coming?

-This venture is growing, and it was exciting to be at the local farmers market this weekend to showcase the EKOSAK.

What are you learning around running a business?

-Finding local textiles is difficult in this particular region (Northern Ontario, Canada).  We would like to source local to reduce our carbon footprint and support small business in the region. Running a business that wants to be as close to 100% locally sourced as possible can be problematic.

What are you learning about yourself?

-I am learning that I enjoy being my own boss, and like (some of) the flexibility that goes along with running your own business.

EKOSAK – reusable produce bags

What is working?

-Sales are steady, and our online marketing seems to be reaching our desired targets.  We (my mom and I) are surprised at the amount of sales we are receiving by word-of-mouth.

What is not working?

-Our manufacturing during the week days is not really working. It is an adjustment with my new job to find the time for production.  The bookkeeping and online marketing are easier to perform since most of it can be done via smart phone (something we have with us most of the time).

How do you feel the project if coming?

-I feel this venture is coming as expected.  We are planning on adding a new product to offer our customers. It is still in development and more research has to be completed before launching.

What are you learning around running a business?

-I am learning that running a business while working full time keeps me very busy.  Finding the time to allocated my duties is difficult at time.  I am very grateful for family support.

What are you learning about yourself?

-I enjoy making an income outside of my income from my job.  Most of the sales are reinvested back into EKOSAK for inventory and product development.

EKOSAK – reusable produce bags

What is working?

-Producing the bags is still working, my mom and I are able to continue to produce supply to meet demand

What is not working?

-I have a new job, so my weekly schedule is going to change drastically.  My bag producing times are not going to work with my new life change.

How do you feel the project if coming?

-There seems to be a lot of interest in eco-friendly products, with my produce bags being no exception.  Many of my mom’s co-workers have made single and double orders, and the online feedback is positive.

What are you learning around running a business?

-I find that using my accounting skills has aided me in the financial part of my business.  I have also experienced the power of social media, as I now have over 100 Tumblr followers since this venture started!

What are you learning about yourself?

-I enjoy learning about running a small business

Company Reviewing and Ranking

In the interest of making it as easy as possible for others to find the products that work best for them and align with a sustainable lifestyle, I’ll be reviewing and ranking companies based on the following categories:

1. Cruelty Free - are the products tested on animals?
2. Sustainability - are the products packaged sustainably?
3. Ingredients - are the ingredients natural?
4. Sources - are the sources responsible?
5. Ethics - does the company endorse sustainability/environmentally friendly attitudes outside of their own company?

I will rank companies based on these five categories. Companies will get either a full point or half a point and have a ranking out of five. They might receive a special mention or an extra point if they check off a requirement that is not on the above list. I’ll still do individual product reviews, but these will be to help point you in the right direction to companies and products you can love guilt free.

Bamboo: Your New Love

Let’s take a moment and talk about how wonderful bamboo is! There are over 1500 types of bamboo that can be found on every almost continent. It can be used in endless ways, including in medicine, architecture, house hold objects, and food! It is extremely low maintenance to grow (so low it generally doesn’t even require fertilizer) and in the right conditions, can grow three feet (0.91 meters) or more in one day and reach maturity within five years. It also releases 30% more oxygen than other plants - that goes without saying it also absorbs more carbon dioxide than other plants. Despite being a plant, bamboo is stronger than steel and can even hold up better than concrete. Unlike concrete, bamboo is naturally antibacterial, meaning items made of bamboo can naturally prevent or kill 70% more bacteria than an object made out of another material. These aren’t even all the amazing things bamboo does! Check out the source for more about what else bamboo does. Of course, on top of all this, bamboo looks fantastic in any home and its compostability means that you don’t have to feel guilty about wanting to buy a new item.

Electricity, Electricity

My siblings and I grew up with our mom telling us we needed to turn lights off to ‘save electricity.’ The primary reason behind this was to reduce our electric bill every month. But did you know that by saving electricity, you also save other resources, such as water? By reducing the amount of electricity you use, you also reduce your use of the resources required to create it. Here are some ways you can reduce your electricity use, carbon footprint, and your monthly bill!

• Turn lights off when you’re not using them. Don’t leave lights on in another room because you’re ‘coming right back.’ It takes almost no effort to flip a switch so you might as well turn it off as you leave the room.
• Unplug things when they are not in use. Even though your charger isn’t charging your phone, it’s still connected to the current, and is basically sending electricity nowhere. This raises your bill and your carbon footprint. (I had a lot of trouble starting this habit, but that was because the outlet I used most often was in a really inconvenient place. Once I found a better placed outlet, I plugged my items into a power strip and now I just unplug the power strip before I leave the room.
• Buy energy-saving lightbulbs and invest in power-saving appliances, if you can.
• Dry your clothes on a line, rather than using a dryer.
• Don’t leave your electronics plugged in all night. If you have the time, charge your phone/tablet/device before you go to bed and then unplug it. Leaving these items plugged in all night is bad for the battery anyways (it reduces the life of the battery much faster than unplugging it once it’s fully charged).
• Open your windows and change your thermostat. If the weather’s nice, ditch the AC! If not, then raise your thermostat by two degrees in the summer and lower it by two degrees in the winter from what you normally use it at. Your AC will turn on less often and won’t have to work for as long.

I switched to a bamboo toothbrush a couple months ago, once my regular plastic Colgate toothbrush was at the end of its life. I discovered bamboo toothbrushes from Instagram ads and I’m glad I did. Before I started this journey, there were things that I didn’t like using and didn’t like throwing away but toothbrushes were never something I thought twice about, since it’s a hygienic item. However, they are made of plastics which don’t decompose for hundreds or thousands of years, depending on the surrounding conditions. Here are the details on them:

• Form: These toothbrushes are made of bamboo and nylon bristles. The bamboo, when composted properly, can decompose in 6 months. Unfortunately, the bristles are not biodegradable. They should be removed before composting the handle. The brushes are also fairly straight as opposed to other plastic ones that tend to curve for a more comfortable grip.
• Price: On Amazon, it is $12 for a pack of 4. This is $4 more than the toothbrushes I normally get. It’s not a big difference though, considering one pack lasts a single person an entire year. It is a little frustrating because I have not been able to find these in a store, only available to order online.
• Fragrance: Not applicable, it’s a toothbrush!
• Packaging: This brand packages the four toothbrushes in individual boxes, inside a larger box. The boxes are made from recycled material and are themselves recyclable. They also do not feature a plastic window, while some other brands do.
• Use: Before switching, I used curved toothbrushes so this was a little weird to switch to but I was accustomed to it within just a few days. It wasn’t uncomfortable, just different. Other people have written reviews saying their brushes had bristles fall out. I purchased a four pack and gave one to each person in my family and the only issue anyone has had was a single bristle (not a clump of them) on my mom’s brush fell out, but she also brushes pretty intensely. I haven’t noticed a difference in my dental hygiene since switching.

I will say it’s a little disappointing to know that the bristles on this are not biodegradable, but through my research I’ve found that so far the only biodegradable alternative are bristles made from pig or boar hair, which I don’t think I could get on board with. I’m going to try and come up with a use for the bristles but I don’t think I’ll have any good ideas for a while. It is nice to be reminded twice a day that I’m making a difference, even by something as simple as changing my tooth brushing implement.

Greenwash: misleading information presented by an organization to appear more environmentally responsible than they actually are

Although you may not look for these terms as much as the others, these are still important to understand which is which. Knowing the difference will allow you to buy from companies that meet your ethical standards with ease.

Clean vs.Nontoxic vs. Organic

Cleanrefers to ingredients that are not harmful to your health.

Nontoxicrefers to ingredients that are not harmful to your health or the environment.

Organicrefers to products that are produced with all natural ingredients, without synthetic chemicals that may have been deemed safe.

Ethical vs. Fair Trade vs. Artisan

Ethicaldescribes appropriate working conditions and employees that are paid fairly for their work by multinational companies.

Fair trade describes the movement ensuring producers abroad receive fair compensation for their work and products.

Artisandescribes products that are handmade, with minimal automation by skilled workers in developing countries.

**It is important to note that although a product can claim to be any of the above, these are not binding terms. The best thing to do is to look for products that are certified by a third party.

There are so many terms that show up on green product labels, you might assume that they all mean pretty much the same thing. However, this would be incorrect. Each term indicates something different about the product you’re buying. Here’s the differentiations between the most common ones you might look for:

Green vs. Eco-friendly vs. Sustainable

Greenapplies to anything that benefits the environment in some way.

Eco-friendly applies to products that don’t harm the planet.

Sustainableis much more specific. It applies to products that do not use a lot of resources (including water, energy, and whatever the product is actually made of) during production and do not create a lot of pollution after disposal.

Cruelty Free vs. Vegetarian vs. Vegan

Cruelty Free means that the ingredients or products have not been tested on animals.

Vegetarian means that a product does not contain animal products but it may contain animal byproducts, such as milk, honey, and other ingredients.

Vegan means that the product does not contain any animal products or byproducts.

**It is important to note that although a product can claim to be any of the above, these are not binding terms. The best thing to do is to look for products that are certified by a third party.

Not trying to scare you, but I think it would be good to know:

• Plastic takes up to 1,000 years to degrade in a landfill.
  
• Recycling plastic takes 88% less energy than making plastic from raw materials.
  
• Enough plastic is thrown away each year to circle the Earth four times.
  
• Americans throw away 35 billion plastic bottles every year.
  
• Only about 25% of the plastic produced in the U.S. is recycled.
  
• If we recycled the other 75% we could save 1 billion gallons of oil and 44 million cubic yards of landfill space annually.
  
• Using aluminum or glass containers is always preferable over plastic.
  
• A plastic bottle of drinking water contains on average 4 cents worth of water.

Source

So many things nowadays come in packages when they don’t have to, like spices, nuts, fruits, and vegetables. A lot of organic stores like Sprouts and Trader Joe’s offer some of these items in bulk, though they usually provide plastic bags for you to use when shopping there. A good way to reduce the amount of packing you have to throw away without limiting what you can eat is buying in bulk. You can go to these shops and bring your own reusable, resealable bags to use and then bring them back again when you need to purchase more. You could also bring the containers you store them in, but depending what you are using that might just be too heavy. If your local grocery stores don’t offer a lot in bulk and you are unsure where else you can go to purchase things in bulk, check out these websites below:

Litterless - allows you to search by state

Zero Waste Nerd - has a list of bulk stores organized by state