I first ran across Orta plastic-free self-watering seed pots last Spring at the Temescal Farmers Market in Oakland, CA. I wanted to review it back then, but what with buying a new home in Maryland, caring for my dad, and then the extreme heat of the Maryland summer, it never happened. So, here I am in Spring 2019 trying again. Anne Fletcher from Orta sent me
Ever since Lush reverted to packaging its Toothy Tabs toothpaste tablets in plastic containers instead of compostable cardboard boxes, I’ve been brushing my teeth with plain baking soda mixed with essential oils. (I pour a bit in the palm of my hand and run my wet toothbrush through it.) This method is fine, and cheap, but I missed the convenience of the tablets, especially while travelling. Finally — well, okay, I may be a few months late to this party
Last month, the City of Berkeley, CA, unanimously passed the nation’s most ambitious, comprehensive ordinance on disposable plastic foodware to date. The new law requires that: Disposable items like utensils, straws, lids, and sleeves may only be provided upon request or at a self-serve station, not automatically. Food vendors must provide compost bins for customers. All disposable takeout foodware must be 100% BPI certified compostable by January 1, 2020. All vendors must charge $0.25 cents for hot
Using our own containers to buy foods from bulk bins is one of the primary ways to avoid plastic packaging while grocery shopping. But it’s not always easy, especially when you’re just beginning your plastic-free journey. First, you have to find shops in your area that offer foods from bulk bins, and then you need to find out how they handle customers’ containers. You only want to pay for what’s inside, so the store needs to have a way
The following is a guest post from Balaka B. Ghosal who contacted me last year to share her zero waste, plastic-free journey. Enjoy! Most big journeys in our lives start with a story. Mine does, too. Right after coming from India to Houston, Texas, with a six-year-old in tow, I was excited about the amazing systems and processes that worked like a well-oiled machine (or at least so it felt to me, as a new immigrant). Interstate highways
The Sulapac® innovation, developed by Finns Suvi Haimi and Laura Kyllönen, combines wood and Nordic design in biodegradable packaging. The Sulapac® material has already got the attention of the world packaging markets as a potential challenger for plastics. Sulapac® innovation is based on Suvi and Laura’s years of study of medical applications and biomaterials. In the research world, they realized that as entrepreneurs they could have a stronger impact on the future of the environment. When the doctoral duo’s biomaterial
Waitrose & Partners is set to trial innovative, fibre-based packaging across its range of Italian ready meals as part of the supermarket group’s commitment to eliminate black plastics from its own-brand products by 2019. The new packaging carries a label encouraging customers to recycle it along with their paper waste The firm, which operates more than 350 stores across the UK, will replace the black plastic trays currently used for three of its Italian ready meal products with the alternative material, which it
Vehicle tyres and synthetic clothing are the two leading contributors to microplastic pollution from UK households, according to a new report from Friends of the Earth. Up to 32,000 tonnes of microplastics enter British waterways each year, according to the report The report, published today (22 November) and entitles ‘Reducing Household Contributions to Marine Plastic Pollution’, reveals that between 9,000 and 32,000 tonnes of microplastic pollution enter British waterways each year from just four sources. The two leading sources are tyre abrasion, with
The Legolands, Sea Life and Madame Tussauds operator has launched a review into the sale and distribution of single-use plastic items across its global estate, pledging a removal of plastic straws from its operations by the end of 2018. Merlin Entertainments operates more than 120 attractions worldwide, including Thorpe Park and Legoland in the UK Merlin Entertainments committed on Friday (23 November) to phase out plastic straws from its entire estate of 124 attractions by the end of 2018, replacing them with paper
