Green Deal

October 29th, 2010

A Greener Halloween Snack

If you’re like me, even the greenest intentions go out the window a little bit at this time of year. (I’m SAVING the kid from the candy by eating it FOR him, right?) But this year we’ll be handing out some tasty treats that also have decent green qualities.
Local organic foodmaker Nature’s Path (featured in a past GreenDeal blog on breakfast cereal) has brought organic ingredients and some fun packaging to the party with Envirokidz Lemur Peanut Choco Drizzle Crispy Rice Bars. If the funky monosyllabic name isn’t enough to whet your appetite, consider the goods inside: “a delectable pairing of chunky peanut butter and peanuts with chocolate drizzle”
And for Moms, almost everything inside is organic, from the brown rice flour to the chocolate icing.
Now, it’s not exactly carrot sticks. But it’s definitely a snack you can feel good about handing out.

September 23rd, 2010

DEADLINE EXTENDED!! Buy New World Granola and 50¢ from every bag goes to help flood victims in Pakistan

Great news! New World Natural Foods has extended their program to help Pakistan until the end of October!

The last time I blogged about New World Natural Foods for GreenDeal.ca, they were raising money for Haiti’s earthquake victims.
That project raised $3600 much-needed dollars for Canadian Red Cross Haiti Earthquake Relief.
Now when you buy a bag of New World’s excellent granola, they will donate 50¢ to help victims in an even greater disaster – the tragic floods in Pakistan.
New World Granola is is Certified Organic (by Quality Assurance International) and is made right in BC. As a local, family run company, that 50¢ from every bag comes right off the bottom line, so it’s a commitment that means a lot.
Pakistan’s situation is truly deserving of more support than it is getting, so why not stop by your local London Drugs to stock up on New World Granola for the winter and help out? And maybe tweet, blog or Facebook a few friends while you’re at it.

September 20th, 2010

Buy New World Granola and help flood victims in Pakistan

Besides being one of my favourite cereals, New World Natural Foods really puts their money where my mouth is.

September 17th, 2010

Bring some organic choice Back to School mornings with Nature’s Path.

If your kid is like mine, he (or she) changes their taste in cereal almost weekly. In order to promote healthy eating and avoid starting the day with a meltdown, I find it handy to have a variety of organic cereal on hand at all times.
That’s where Nature’s Path comes in. They have been steadily growing their selection of organic breakfast cereals over the years so that now whatever your taste – hot, cold, sweet, natural – there’s something to try. Here are a few of the favourites around our house:

Organic Hot Oatmeal Variety Pack
These are instant, tasty and varied. Flavours include apple cinnamon, flax and oats, maple nut, and multigrain raisin.

Optimum
This is a more power-packed cereal with extra fiber and protein, fortified with vitamins and soy isoflavones. A good selection of grains too, with flax flakes, puffed kamut grains and loose flaxseed. Plus organic cinnamon flavour. Mmmmm!

Hemp Plus Granola
OK, I’m a hippie. But this stuff is good! Whole grain, organic and low-sodium too. Groovy.

Organic Whole Grain O’s – GLUTEN FREE!
For parents with kids who have gluten sensitivities or wheat allergies, it can be a real pain to find cereal options. This is a variation on the classic ‘O’ made with organic corn and whole grain rice that brings the fun back, especially as little toddler finger food.

Nature’s Path makes their products in 3 locations: Delta, BC; Blaine, WA; and Mississauga, ON. Their home office is located in Richmond. BC, where they have an on-site organic garden, some really big compost bins, a rooftop garden, and a rainwater harvesting system.

That’s a pretty real Green Deal!

August 15th, 2010

How to stay fresh and green in the summer heat.

If you search the Internet, you’ll find quite a bit of discussion about deodorant chemicals and health. Yet even the most dedicated green-freaks among us don’t want to go around smelling like a goat farm. Fortunately London Drugs carries a number of great deodorant brands with natural ingredients, fewer chemicals and some very interesting botanical scents.

Nature’s Gate Organics Deodorant
This brand gets my vote for best scent adjectives. Starting the day with a whiff of Lemongrass & Clary Sage, Grapefruit & Wild Ginger or Chamomile & Lemon Verbena has to do something for you. It’s also free of paraben, propylene glycol and aluminum.

Lafe’s Natural and Organic Deodorant Roll-On or Stick
Made with mineral salts that eliminate odor-causing bacteria, these deodorants contains no aluminum chlorhydrate, paraben or proplyene glycol, are alcohol free and are made with certified organic hemp oil and aloe vera to soften the skin.

Tom’s of Maine Natural Deodorant
Tom’s of Maine Natural Deodorant Stick combines natural odor fighting botanicals, lichen and coriander, with soothing, gentle aloe vera. Mild but effective, this formula contains no alcohol, artificial preservatives, or synthetic ingredients. Tom’s also offers a long-lasting deodorant stick with zinc ricinoleate, (sourced from castor beans), to absorb and neutralize odor.

Jason Tea Tree Deodorant Stick and Natural Deodorant
Jason Tea Tree Deodorant Stick is formulated without Alcohol, Aluminum Chlorohydrate or Propylene Glycol. Formulated with Certified Organic Tea Tree Oil, well known for its anti-bacterial and antiseptic properties, as well as Azulene, for its skin soothing properties.

July 27th, 2010

What’s the Green Deal with Fair Trade Coffee?

The Fair Trade symbol is one we see on more and more products these days. But what does it really mean? I visited Ethical Bean Coffee to find out, and was treated to a ‘cupping’ – the serious coffee tasting process used to judge and grade java on the market. I also found out this is one company that really lives up to its name, so join me for a quick look behind the grind. Then get down to your local London Drugs and grab some of these ethical beans for yourself. (P.S. If you have an iPhone, there’s a special surprise waiting on their new packages as well!)

July 12th, 2010

Making our Green Deal booth as green as we can.

Trade shows and networking events are a great way to spread our green message. But if our display doesn’t share those green values, what’s the point? When creating the display for our What’s the Green Deal program at the 2010 EPIC Sustainable Living Show, we wanted it to be 100% Recycled, Recyclable or Reusable.
We had four stories to tell: 1) Introduce the What’s the Green Deal program, 2) Make people aware of our Bring Back the Pack and styrofoam recycling, 3) Profile some of our green products and 4) Showcase our responsible electronics recycling.
Using a combination of custom-built displays and commercially-available ‘green’ booth components we were able to do all that and come pretty close to achieving ‘3-R’ status.
The Panda Banner stands are made from 90% renewable resources (bamboo) and images are printed on cotton fabric utilizing low VOC inks.
The laptop recycling and Bring Back the Pack styrofoam recycling displays were custom made with actual recycled components from our partner, Genesis Recycling. And at the end of the display’s life, all those pieces will be returned to the responsible recycling stream.
The EPIC show was successful for London Drugs. We spoke to a lot of people about What’s the Green Deal, and got TV interviews from Global and CBC. Watch for our display at other community events in the future. And when it’s message becomes outdated, almost every component will be able to be kept out of landfill. That’s a good feeling that lasts long after the tradeshow lights have dimmed.

June 30th, 2010

Green Deal 101: What makes a Green Deal product ‘green’?

Since we started the program in 2008, the list of What’s the Green Deal products has steadily grown as shoppers demand more sustainable options and manufacturers find more ways to make them. So how does a product qualify for a Green Deal sign in your local London Drugs?

When a product is considered, the Green Deal team looks for the following benefits:

Organic Production
Reduced Packaging
Reduced Energy Use
Recyclable Packaging or content
Products that are degradable or compostable
Recycled content in products or packaging
Reduced synthetic chemicals / toxins
Local production
Reduced carbon footprint
Logical environmental advantages (such as rechargeable batteries)
Third-party certification
Self-declared environmental claims
Corporate responsibility

The best recommendation a product can have is third-party certification, such as BC Certified Organic, Transfair or Energy Star. Self-declared claims are also accepted if the product’s package and/or website offer reasonable transparency and support for the claim. We may contact manufacturers directly with specific questions in these cases. We also look at the product relative to others in its category. (If all the products on a shelf have recycled packaging, for instance, it would take more than that alone to qualify for Green Deal status)

Corporate behaviour plays a role, too. Does the manufacturer contribute to environmental or social causes? Are they measuring and working towards reducing their carbon footprint?

Ultimately, ‘green’ is in the eye of the beholder – there is no such thing as a ‘zero-footprint’ product. That’s why What’s the Green Deal is an information program, pointing out product benefits that also have benefits for the environment and leaving the ultimate green shopping decision to you.

We continue to refine and define our What’s the Green Deal process, so if you have feedback on our program or products, we’d love to hear from you. Send us a message on Twitter @WTGreenDeal or leave a comment on this blog.

Because the real Green Deal is what you do with it.

June 29th, 2010

Manufacturers work to reduce packaging on the shelf and behind the scenes.

I always get irritated when I have to buy over-packaged products. But the environmental impacts of excess packaging also happen where we can’t even see them – in manufacturing, shipping and warehousing. That’s why smart companies are working to reduce the amount of material (and air) that they ship with their goods, as well as looking for more recycled and recyclable packaging.
Take the recent redesign of the box for the Braun cruZer razor, which resulted in a package that is 65% smaller and uses 66% less PET plastic. A similar redesign for the Multiquick allowed for 167% more units to be shipped per pallet. This change alone will result in saving of an estimated 480,000 litres of fuel in shipping & handling, representing 1,270 tons of CO2 emissions.
Panasonic has also been working to improve packaging. In 2009 they moved from plastic packs on all SD memory Card models, to 2-ply sealed paper Eco packs, reducing PET plastic used by 90%. The same year, they moved from plastic packs to recycled paper boxes for all DSC batteries and in 2010 will do the same for all Camcorder batteries.
Of course the best packaging is no packaging at all. The Sony Vaio W Series Eco Edition laptop not only has a case made from 20% recycled CD plastic material, it ships in a stylish carry case rather than a disposable cardboard box.
Shipping savings and efficiencies aren’t the only things companies respond to. If you think your favourite product is over-packaged, write to the manufacturer or call their 1-800 customer service line to let them know.

June 21st, 2010

Eco-Flossers help white teeth become greener.

I always wince when my kid has to throw out plastic – even if it’s as small as a disposable flosser. So I was happy to see an alternative, with ECO-flossers from Clean Idea™.
Clean Idea™ products are manufactured with starch-based resins that utilize crops like corn, wheat, tapioca, and potatoes. According to the Clean Idea website, this makes them “biodegradable and compostable, meeting BPI (Biodegradable Products Institute) standards for compostability (ASTM 6400 D99 and ASTM 6868), and European Bioplastics standards (EN 13432).”
Further, the website says, “…in order to achieve “compostable” certification, a plastic product must decompose within 60 to 180 days in a commercial compost facility. Unlike materials designated as biodegradable, those certified as compostable are designed to compost quickly without releasing any toxic residues.”
Even the paper package was a nice change from plastic.
Personally, I use floss from a big roll wrapped around my fingers, but my 10-year old doesn’t quite have the technique yet. These ‘pre-loaded’ flossers really help him get the job done and provide a good portable alternative as well.
So it’s a small green thing. But it makes me smile.

A Greener Halloween Snack

DEADLINE EXTENDED!! Buy New World Granola and 50¢ from every bag goes to help flood victims in Pakistan

Buy New World Granola and help flood victims in Pakistan

Bring some organic choice Back to School mornings with Nature’s Path.

How to stay fresh and green in the summer heat.

What’s the Green Deal with Fair Trade Coffee?

Making our Green Deal booth as green as we can.

Green Deal 101: What makes a Green Deal product ‘green’?

Manufacturers work to reduce packaging on the shelf and behind the scenes.

Eco-Flossers help white teeth become greener.

Archives

Categories

Services

Education

About