Sourcing sustainable, eco-friendly products?

NZ Gift Fairs are one avenue we use to source sustainable, eco-friendly products for Green Bazaar.

I spent a day at the recent Spring Gift Fair in Auckland. This is the 3rd NZ Gift Fair I have attended in the last 18 months. My practice is to ask every exhibitor I think might have a product that fitts well with Green Bazaar, if they had any items that they would class sustainable or eco-friendly. 90% of the time this has been met with a puzzled look. It appears sustainable is a confusing word, but Eco-Friendly is slightly better understood and once this description is used a light goes on and I get a response, no they don’t have anything. Remember this is approx 90% of Exhibitors approached.

In the recent Spring Gift Fair Official Magazine it advertised that Eco Friendly Table Talkers would be displayed on those Stands that had products that complied with the “Guidelines for Green Marketing” issued by the NZ Commerce Commission. Yeh, this meant I would not have to stop and talk to every Exhibitor (there are hundreds of them). I could just look for the Eco Friendly Table Talkers and stop at these Stands.

Well there were 8 Halls to cover, I’ve got to Hall 2 and haven’t come across any of these Table Talkers at all. I am getting despondent so while enquiring about a product I asked why they didn’t have the Table Talker on the Stand to identify them as an Exhibitor of such products. “Oh, we did get them in our package, and the Made in NZ one as well, but just never thought to put it up on our Stand.” In other words they didn’t see the value of using it. I was absolutely astonished, and extremely disappointed. Green Bazaar is obviously one of very few retailers asking for such products at these Gift Fairs (if not the only one who actually asks the questions).

It has and still does surprise me how many Suppliers at the NZ Gift Fairs have no idea or interest (it appears), about how their products are made, what they are made of, whether they are made ethically, and/or meet any recognised Standard, or that in doing so they might attract more Retail Customers. Most responses I got from Suppliers and Distributors at this Fair were “everythings Made in China these days, it’s too expensive to produce elsewhere”, “people are only interested in price”, “no one is interested in where or how products are made”.

At the 3 Gift Fairs I have attended, 85% (I’m being generous here) of Exhibitors products don’t meet or fit any sustainable or eco-friendly criteria on our list – the numbers have amazed me each time. The 10 – 15% that do, are usually younger Kiwis (with the odd Australian or European). They are usually in their late 20s  to early 40s, with an earth friendly conscience and want to make a difference, have an interest in producing quality goods, and are passionate about what they do. There is hope !!!  How refreshing it is when we find them, and an instant, easy conversation happens. How their product came into being (there is always a story), where it is made, what it is made from, and who is interested in buying it, ensues.

Until there is enough ground swell demand for sustainable, eco friendly products for home and living Suppliers, Distributors and Manufacturers will continue to make and stock products that are not sustainable for this planet. It also tells me that Green Bazaar has a niche market fit and a big future in the Sustainable Home and Living Retail Shopping market. We are very happy about this.

Remember Gift Fairs are only one avenue Green Bazaar sources it’s products from. Your comments and experiences on sourcing sustainable, eco-friendly products would be most welcome…

Happy Sustainable Shopping – Ginny Green

 

The Wild Green Yonder – Book Review

This is a delightful account of a Wwoofer and her travels around, a good part of, New Zealand.

If you enjoy organic gardening, permaculture, or gardening in general, you will enjoy reading about Phillipa Jamieson’s experiences. She gives a great account of her time working on organic lifestyle blocks and farms, with information on growing techniques and methods – from apple tree grafting to the latest term used for cooking from scratch “Slow Food”. (I love it), it’s going to be my catch phrase for now.

I can recommend this book to anyone who enjoys gardening, travelling and being in the great outdoors, but also those most interested in organic gardening.

If you like a ‘real life’ story, travelling, and/or social interest ‘The Wild Green Yonder’ will immerse you in the stuff of it.

I liked the addition of recipes, poems, anecdotes and things to take away from the book, once read. It’s a book I would keep for future reference as there is so much information in it.

If you have Wwoofed then you’ll enjoy this read. And it is a must if you are considering Wwoofing in the future as you will get a realistic picture of what to expect (I can say this as I have Wwoofed, ever so briefly, myself)

If this sounds like the book for you then purchase it now from Green Bazaar where it is on Special till end of July 2010.

Happy Reading – Ginny Green

 

Why Use EcoCover Weed Mats?

EcoCover Weed Mats are organic and compostable, and made in New Zealand – a perfect fit for Green Bazaar. Made from waste paper (shredded), organic glue and 80% recycled kraft paper.

Benefits of using EcoCover Weed Mats:

• Builds soil carbon levels
• Organic
• Sequesters CO2
• Compostable
• Conserves water
• Reduces plant mortality
• Controls weeds
• Promotes plant and crop growth
• Eliminates or reduces herbicide use and remedial maintenance
• A carrier of beneficial additives for the soil
• Saves money

Unlike plastic, EcoCover allows the soil to breathe keeping micro organisms alive. Plus there is no heat/baking effect, but instead a beneficial protection against heat and cold. Being 100% compostable, EcoCover does not present the same environmental disposal problems as plastic.

MAXIMIZES WATER RETENTION, MINIMIZES WEED GROWTH, ACCELERATES PLANT GROWTH

EcoCover provides a biodegradable soil skin to improve soil conditioning and moisture retention, improve soil fertility, plant growth and security and supresses weeds naturally.

EcoCover blocks the sunlight to render the weed seeds in the soil dormant thereby suppressing the ability for the seeds to germinate. The plant grows faster forming its own light blocking canopy naturally keeping the weeds suppressed.

ECOCOVER ECOPIN

Designed especially for EcoCover Weed Mats, the EcoPin is a world first. Unique features include 100% biodegradability yet with very high impact strength, and especially designed barbs on the shaft to assist with the EcoPin positioning and holding power in the soil.

Benefits of using EcoPins:

• Replaces metal pins that never degrade
• Suitable for pinning landscape fabric, newly laid sod, paper mulch mats, and plastic film
• 100% biodegradable. Choose to leave in the soil or remove
• Lightweight
• Cost effective
• Unique barbed shaft improves EcoPin’s anchoring power in soil
• World first using a unique EcoCover proprietary formulation

Use EcoCover Weed Mat and EcoPins when landscaping a new property, or a new bit of garden area, in vegetable gardens with larger plants, when planting roses. Also perfect for planting large areas of land as in a farm block for forestry, or planting an orchard.

Green Bazaar has the EcoCover Weed Mats and EcoPins on SPECIAL for the month of July 2010, if you are planting or planning to plant trees, shrubs etc then this current SPECIAL is a perfect mulch option.

If you would like to receive our eNewsletter then Sign Up now, and Go In The Draw for our next Monthly Prize Draw.

Happy planting, Ginny Green

 

Worms and Tea Bags!

Worm Farms and Tea Bags – Yes, worms love tea leaves but not necessarily tea bags. Not all tea bags are biodegradable? Have you noticed that your worms are not eating through your tea bags? What brand of tea bag are you using?

If the tea bags you are using are not being eaten by your worms then the odds are the material your tea bags are made of will have a synthetic or plastic component included in it, therefore, will not be 100% compostable and biodegradable. You can either stop feeding these tea bags to your worms and send them to landfill instead, or choose another brand of tea bag that is 100% compostable/biodegradable.

Green Bazaar stocks Trade Aid Fair Trade Tea Bags - these are made from filter paper only, and are 100% compostable/biodgradable and can, therefore, go into your Worm Farm or compost bin without any problems - your worms will love them. Trade Aid in New Zealand feed their tea bags to their worms with no trouble at all.

Happy tea drinking, Ginny Green

 

Can you recycle shredded paper?

I get google alerts on topics I’m interested in and ‘New Zealand Recycled Products’ is one of these topics.

This morning I received an Alert linking to a blog from LiveStrong.com under this heading, that said as part of their blog on ‘Things Which Cannot Be Recylced’, the New Zealand Ministry of the Environment says shredded paper cannot be recycled. I then went to the Ministry website to find the source of the quote, searched for some time but couldn’t find it. This is not to say that it isn’t there, but a reference on the blog to it would have been helpful.

If the Ministry does list Shredded Paper as one item that Can’t be Recycled then I beg to differ. We shred all our waste paper and use it when packaging up products for dispatch. I am quite sure we are not the only business that does this.

Also, Green Bazaar’s latest product addition is EcoCover Weed Mats, these are made from recycled shredded paper and other organic material. The shredded paper is sandwiched between the top and bottom layer of the weed mat and includes organic fertiliser – a brilliant reuse of shredded paper. http://bit.ly/brTdkT

 

A First for Green Bazaar

A first for Green Bazaar.  Recently we took Green Bazaar to the Waitakere Home and Garden Show.  Yes, we have exhibited before but this time we decided to set up our Stand as a Shop.  At previous expos we had stands promoting particular items with promotions to encourage consumers to sign up for our eNewsletter – along with promotions to drive consumers to our Website.

For the first time the Home and Garden Show had an Eco Innovation Section and we were lucky enough to be the first Stand in this Section.  We were thrilled as the fit for us in this section was exactly where we would want to be.

How did we go about setting up as a shop? Well, fortunately we have a family member who has worked in retail for a good many years (thank you Fiona), so Janis sat down with her and we planned how we wanted our Shop to look. We took into account what products we wanted to promote, what we sold more of, how we wanted to display product, size of product shelving, how much room we would need between shelving/displays, how to attract consumers onto our Stand, what we wanted from our signage and look, how to price products, where we would physically stand (two of us were going to be on the Stand), and where would consumers make purchase transactions.

With a plan mapped out on paper, product on board, display stands rented, we took all day Thursday to set up. The back wall display took the longest to put together (quite labour intensive), but the outcome was spot on and looked exactly as was planned.

The Show ran over Friday, Saturday and Sunday from 10am to 6pm, finishing at 5pm on the last day. We planned to change one central display each day, promoting a theme for each of these days. By doing this, our goal was to find out if the different themes attracted more or less consumers to purchase.

Come 10am Friday morning we were ready to go. The response from the first wave of visitors was hugely encouraging, as consistently many people looked right at our Stand as they came around the corner into the Eco Innovation section, stopped briefly to look at our Stand and then decided to enter it or move on. Many if not most of the visitors at this point entered our stand or came closer to look at the product range we had available. And this continued throughout the 3 days the Show was on.

Changing the central display each day, with quite focussed themes eg Friday it was all about Living Light Candles, Saturday all about recycling kitchen vege and fruit waste with BioBags and MaxAir Bins, and Sunday was about Mums, Babies, and Toddlers.

The candles attracted a huge number of people (mostly women), with its colourful display and attractive fragrances, but few sales. Saturday the MaxAir Bins and BioBags proved a hit with this being the display that got the most sales of the three days. And Sunday, Grandmothers, mothers, toddlers and children all stopped to look and purchase. We had an Interactive Toy available for children to play with, and this attracted so many young children, and ofcourse Mum or Dad had to stop while they played with the game. A huge success. With sales from this display coming in at 2nd.

What we wanted from this Shop set up (with the exception of Sales ofcourse), was to see how people responded to the variety and product range we stock, and if they understood what Green Bazaar was all about (sustainable products). The outcome was extremely positive from the variety and product range stocked point of view. Less so from the do consumers know that these products have a sustainable focus and, therefore, they can happily know they have made a conscience choice when purchasing from Green Bazaar. Although, about a 3rd of people did realise there was an eco-friendly theme to the products available, as we got a reasonable number of further green product queries before a purchase decision was made.

Some of the items that got the most interest were: Stainless Steel Drink Bottles (we sold out), BioBags, Glass Babies Bottles, EcoStore cleaning products, Hempz bodycare, and as with every expo we have done the BioToilet.

Overall, we were thrilled with the outcome and response from visitors. We now know that the product variety and range width appeals to consumers, and that consumers are making a growing purchase decision choice for eco-friendly products.

We also got great feedback from consumers and visitors alike, with many people signing up to subscribe to our eNewsletter.

Late Sunday it was pack up time and head back home to the Waikato. It sure does take time to catch up after Exhibiting at an Expo. It has taken two weeks and I still haven’t quite caught up on, followups, restocking and getting back on track with the day to day running of Green Bazaar.

A big thank you to everyone who visited us – it was a great experience, and one we will definitely be doing again.

 

Hemp: Cannabis: Marijuana – Which one is the most sustainably versatile?

The terms Hemp, Cannabis and Marijuana sometimes get used interchangeably, that isn’t right, here’s why. Cannabis is the family of hemp plants. Both Hemp (also referred to as Industrial Hemp) and Marijuana are from the Cannabis Sativa variety but there are many forms of Cannabis plant species. It’s the drug or psychotic effects of some plants that is known as Marijuana. Essentially marijuana plants have higher levels of Tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) usually 2-5% than industrial hemp which has about 0.3%. This means that as a recreational drug industrial hemp packs the same wallup as zucchini!

Hemp is one of the oldest crops used for cultivation; it was used in China as early as 4000BC. Hemp was a very valuable crop for many centuries. It had a huge range of applications, clothing, ropes, paper and food. Sailing ships required many tones of hemp for rope and sails. It was so highly valued at one point that it was used to pay taxes.

The start of hemps decline was due to increasing numbers of alternative fibers in the 1800’s. Technological breakthroughs at that time of cotton gin, the ability to make paper from trees and the rise of the petrochemical industry became competitors for the traditional hemp markets. The abolition of slavery following the Civil War put hemp at a competitive disadvantage because its harvest required intensive labour, machinery was not developed until the mid 1930’s but by then the decline had taken on a new foe. The US Marijuana Tax Act 1937 together with a sensational newspaper campaign from owners within the petrochemical and timber holdings industries further diminished the hemp markets. In 1971 the US Govt banned hemp production as part of their drug policy. Since hemp wasn’t being used commercially it seems they ‘threw the baby out with the bathwater’ with this ban.

Internationally hemp has been making a comeback (commercially grown) since the early 1990’s. New Zealand and the US have been at the tail end of legalizing hemp cropping. Australia legalized in 1996 but it took us a full 10yrs to follow suit (although we did have a few trials before that).

Hemp clothing and textiles are stronger than cotton, warmer then linen, comfortable and durable. Hemps long fibers make building materials that are stronger than wood or concrete. Hemp seed contains one of nature’s most perfectly balanced oils, high in protein, richer in vitamin E than soy and possessing all eight fatty acids. Hemp is fast growing, requires no herbicides & little or no pesticides. What a great sustainable versatile plant hemp is.

 

How Much Food Waste Goes To Landfill?

I was astonished to find out how much food we waste when looking at the New Zealand government sustainability website.

“Best Before” and “Use By” : How much food with expired Best Before and Use By dates goes to Landfill?

It is reported on the sustainability.govt.nz website that in a 2008 UK study 70kg of edible food per person is thrown away each year. 61% of the food thrown away could have been eaten if it had been better managed.  Australian research from 2004 found that the majority of food thrown away was fresh food and left overs.

Wasting food is throwing away money!  Who can afford to do this?

Some idea on how to reduce Food Waste?

• Plan Meals – write a list of what food you do need before shopping
• Use up left overs – freeze leftovers if you think you won’t use them within 24hours.
• Store Food Properly – eg. apples will last longer if stored in the fridge
• Measure correct meal portion sizes – so you don’t cook more food than you need – check recommended portion sizes eg. on pasta and rice packets.
• Check Use By and Best Before dates – Best Before doesn’t mean its not suitable to use – it just means it has passed its best quality.
• Check dates on food in your fridge regularly – make sure you use it before it goes off – bring it to the front of your fridge.

Reduce	Reuse	Recycle
Buy less – make a shopping list	Freeze leftovers	Compost instead of sending to landfill

• Food waste is money thrown away
• Food waste is water and energy, in production, thrown away
• Food waste is unnecessary landfill

For more information on Food Waste go to: http://bit.ly/cCyiqv

 

Want to say ‘no to plastic bags’?

How do you know a sustainable replacement for a plastic bag when you see one?

I’m using BioBags® at home for kitchen vegetable waste and my kitchen tidy bin. I know they completely compost as I’ve literally watched them disintegrate in my own home compost bin. They actually turn to dirt and disappear within a few months. I know what they are made of – Mater-Bi ie. Matter that comes from agricultural origin – comes from the soil and composts to the soil. I know where they are made (Norway), and I know they meet fully certified international standards, as each bag is labeled with the Standards they comply with.

As I am interested in replacements for plastic bags I look at most bags I’m given when out shopping. Recently I was given a bag with the word ‘biodegradable’ on it, along with 3 other logos along the bottom of the bag, and thought oh another bio type bag, yea. I was interested in finding out more about it so went online to look up the company that is identified on the bag and to find out what the other logos on the bag mean. On further investigation I found that this ‘biodegradable’ labeled bag is infact not biodegradable, as I first thought.

The ‘biodegradable’ bag is made from REGULAR PLASTIC and the 3 logos represent: a) the company that makes and sells this product; b) an additive included in its manufacturing process to help break up the plastic bag into fragments in less time than regular plastic, called D₂W; and c) a Keep NZ Beautiful logo. Now this is great marketing, BUT I felt cheated as my first thoughts on seeing it were ‘this is not a plastic bag’.

I have since looked up many references online for Degradable, Biodegradable, Oxo-Biodegradable and the more I look at references to these words in relation to plastic, the more I am convinced that I don’t want any part of them. At best they appear to break down the plastic into fragments, at worst they don’t comply with any Standard, attract toxic residue to the plastic fragments and dust, and have the potential to infiltrate our food chain through waterways and soil. The information often contradicts other information, and all in all is totally confusing to the layperson wanting ethical evidence as to their true decomposition.

This has lead me to my own conclusion that again, as with so many things, it pays to do your own research. Seek out more information, ask for evidence, and decide for yourself.

I have found the biggest single factor with ‘sustainable replacement for plastic bags’ is to check LOGO signage on bags for credibility of source and Standards met. Current ACCEPTED Standard Specifications as of 2008 from the Society of the Plastics Industry are: ASTM D6400, ASTM D6868, ASTM D7081 or EN 13432, as mentioned in the Position Paper identified below.

For me, the most recent European plastics industry position paper is what I am basing my personal decision on. Position Paper on Oxo-Biodegradables and Other Degradable Additives – Society of the Plastics Industry – Bioplastics Council – dated January 2010.

To get back to the bag in question that started this all off for me, and is now appearing in many retail outlets and roadside stalls (I’ve seen them), it is not labeled with any of the accepted, recognised Standards mentioned in this blog.

DON’T BE FOOLED ! ! ! !

You haven’t heard the last on this issue from me, in fact it is only the beginning.

Here is the conclusion from the Position Paper mentioned above:

“CONCLUSION:

The position of the SPI Bioplastics Council is that any claim, especially claims for consumers, needs to be supported by scientific data. In the case of “oxo-biodegradables” the issue is one of claiming “biodegradation” where there is not data to support those claims or prove biodegradability as per accepted standards. Biodegradation needs to be quantified scientifically by well established third-party reviewed specifications. Allowing the brand owner, retailer or ultimately the consumer to decide what they consider a “biodegradable” product to be is risky, as they may lack the scientific knowledge to make an accurate claim. As the biodegradation “end-of-life” products continue to develop, it is the duty of the industry to provide clear, substantiated scientific data that will assure stakeholders that the products offered meet their requirements for end-of-life disposal options such as industrial composting, home composting, water, soil, or the ocean.” Here is a link to the full Position Paper  HYPERLINK “http://bit.ly/9tY4Gz” http://bit.ly/9tY4Gz

Another very helpful, credible website to visit for further information and a link to the above paper is European Bioplastics  HYPERLINK “http://bit.ly/ae2oIN” http://bit.ly/ae2oIN – go to the Product Quality Section listed on the left hand side of the home page. ‘Why not keep it in your Favorites for quick reference.’