Eco Friendly Products Have Fewer Chemicals

Eco Friendly Products are Often Organic

Previously, I talked about genuinely eco friendly products Reducing their impact by having less packaging – an easy thing to spot.

Another way to Reduce the impact of a product is to use organic ingredients.  Now here, you as a consumer do need to be a little more aware.

There is limited or no legislation in most countries when it comes to labelling products “natural”.

Even calling items “organic” has a lot of wiggle-room.

What is “natural”? 

Well, don’t get me started.  The implication is that natural is good.  Arsenic is natural (it comes from the earth’s crust).  But it’s not exactly healthy.  So saying something is natural doesn’t really mean a lot.  Particularly as it’s not regulated.  You can call pretty much anything natural – it doesn’t mean it’s good.

What is “organic”? 

Organic crops are raised without chemical pesticides, and organic fresh produce (e.g. meat, eggs) is raised on food which does not contain hormones or antibiotics.  And no GMOs (genetically modified organisms).

It’s extra work to be organic (I know, I grow food organically!).  You’ve got to find alternative ways of stopping pests and diseases from damaging your crops, and you have to rotate your crops so the soil doesn’t become depleted (because you can’t use chemical fertilizers).

But it’s good for the environment because there’s no toxic run-off from the fields into the streams and thus our drinking water supply.   Organic livestock rearing is normally better for animal welfare too.

And organic food is healthy for us because we’re not eating chemical residues, and our meat isn’t from animals fed growth hormones and antibiotics, which also leave a residue.

Be warned, however.  Grass fed beef, and certain organic produce are sold at a premium price.  Why?  Because it takes more effort, and because there aren’t the subsidies given to factory farming.

That spending choice is yours.  Personally, I prefer to spend a little more on healthy food, which also helps  the environment, but not everyone has that luxury.

Certified Organic

Organic can be certified or non-certified.

Certified must be better, right?

Sometimes.

To be Certified Organic takes a huge amount of work and is an expensive operation.

But it does add a huge degree of reliability to the products you sell.

There are many smaller farmers, all over the world, who run on organic methods, but aren’t certified.  You can find them at farmers’ markets, or local markets everywhere.   Should you buy from them if you want organic food?

I believe you should chat to them, see how they farm.   Market stalls are not like supermarkets, people are willing to chat if it’s not frantically busy.  Get a feel for the farmers whose ethos you like.

For other products which say they’re organic – be suspicious.  Don’t be like my friend and believe the label.  For example, there is one major retailer whose product line is called “Organics”.   I looked briefly at the bottle – no organic certification, and the ingredients lists contained lots of chemicals.

What else can be Reduced?

Eco friendly products are often manufactured in ways which reduce the amount of water or energy they consume.  However, often there’s no space to describe this on the product.  It may be on the manufacturer’s website.

When I recommend eco friendly products, I do all that research for you.

So, now we’ve added another option to check if a product is eco friendly.

Ecofriendly products Reduce by using less packaging and by not adding toxic chemicals.  They’re better for you and your health, and more sustainable for the environment.

Next:  How eco friendly products Re-use.

PS:  In most countries, “Certified Organic” or “100% Organic” means that everything (ingredients, processing aids and additives) are all certified Organic.

In North America, “Organic” means that 95% of the ingredients must be Organic.  The 5% must be “USDA allowed substances”, but it’s fairly generous.

“Made with Organic Ingredients” means 70% of the ingredients are organic, the other 30% can be anything.

Products with less than 70% organic ingredients only need to list their organic ingredients on the ingredient panel (which I find a little worrying).