Croutons and/or soup in your soup?

This article caught my eye at first for professional RE:tie reasons:

http://www.packagingnews.co.uk/environment/innovator-casts-net-wide-for-ecover-plastic-profile/

Certainly worth sharing anyway as a company looks at innovative ways to address packaging and reduce waste.

But, as you'll gather, I also got interested again in matters of 'degrading' as a mooted option, and the pros and cons of this.

The film 'Trashed' sprung to mind, which was reviewed here, and also the open-ended discussion on plastic degradation here.

*****

Glad I got inspired and found the time to pop a new post up.

Especially as, in so doing, I happened to notice the site stats for the blog alone.... two days ago there were almost 500 visitors in none day!

Wow.

If folk are liking the content I'd bet see about getting more and keeping it fresher.

Don't forget the FaceBook page is always worth a scope too.

One man banned?

I'll have to be careful.

But every time I see one of these...

How hard is it to live plastic-free?

...well-meaning but ultimately endless talkfests on how best to ban stuff with little sense or science on viable reductions, I feel it my duty to pop in a positive to show the joys of reuse.

Maybe it's a male thing, but I feel making something from waste can be every bit as satisfying as just moaning about it.

Mind you, at the moment their direction gets a more empathetic audience, and pays better.

Junkk washes greener?

I've shared them, and the story, before, but in the spirit of positivity and 'as one door closes...' I think it's worth doing so again.

You're looking at the Junkk.com 'brochure'.

Roughly lifesize, this little... very little... piece of printing was the result of an encounter with a passionate environmentalist, and has turned into one of our more successful promotional tools, especially in combo with the Vac:Sac (I get stopped and asked what it's all about... and produce a card. And, if I am lucky, the recipient does turn it into a passport-sized picture frame - mine is in its 4th year protecting the boys' images - that is also a wallet-borne promo for Junkk.com in everyone's pocket... especially when presenting said picture of loved ones and then, hopefully, asked about the frame).

Anyhoo, the first flyer outing was not so successful, an A5 card, and I paid the price. I was at some show and this bloke barrelled up waving it and demanded... 'Is this made from recycled paper!!!!?' Erk. I didn't know. I doubted it. As I had to get it done fast, and cheap. Not the ideal environment for the, um, ideal environment to be specified, waited for... or afforded. Especially when trying to share a whole stand of lovely reuse ideas to a bunch of folk now much more interested in this piece of paper being waved about.

So I determined to resolve this to avoid such confrontations. Hence the pocket picture frame came to be. And, months later, the guy did re-appear, and did again raise his voice, and ire, in challenge.

Only this time, mid-flow I quietly and politely (well, as you can) interrupted and said 'It's better than recyclable... it's reusable, which is even higher on the 're-hierarchy', and better for the planet'. The appreciation of the audience for this solution felt good. Oddly, the man in question seemed even angrier, but left, muttering. Can't please everyone, all of the time.

I was minded of the opportunities of aspects of this when reading a fellow eco-blogger's post the other day...

Ecover packaging - is it really recyclable? (where facilities exist, perhaps)

The key here is in the bracket, as a brand or retailer, while still a major part of the process, is still very much at the hands of our fragmented recycling collection and processing systems around the UK.

You can do all you can (as such as ecover and Innocent I truly believe are trying to do), but at the end of the day... not all that is green can be black or white. Or, in this case, make recyclable as easily in one county, or even town, as another (witness ours, where a great home kerbside/public space skip, segregated waste collection combo is being scrapped in favour of a single green wheelie that sends all your waste in a black plastic bag to a remote MRF to, one fears, produce box-ticking but possibly less than industry-desired recyclate. Hardly great for my kids' futures, and hence a real enviROI eyebrow-cranking target for me).

Far be it from me to 'defend' a brand that uses plastic, or indeed any other packaging, but I do tend to accept more than others that, in a modern, consumerist, growing population, time-poor, work-from-home separated, etc, etc, society, that some has to be inevitable, for logistics alone, and for the environment even, especially with protection issues. Hence I am more interested in and devote my time to uses, or rather resues, more than bans, though reductions in unnecessary areas are of course desirable.

And ecover, bless 'em, could hardly do more, though much of what they do get up to can get shared in a way that does bring them under perhaps more scrutiny than others. A higher standard and all that. But in a world where making things green often does add a cost penalty, and a cost penalty can lead to poorer competitiveness, especially on the shelves, so much of their CSR, from green-roofed factories to the actual contents of their products, does suggest going as an extra a mile (well, kilometer... they are based in Belgium I think) as is possible in a credit-crunchy era. Especially when I suspect all most now want, or are having to weigh up between pocket and planet, is whiter whites for the least money, rather than just the greenest ones.

But these things do need discussing, and debating, so I felt the urge to try at least to point out one area that was eyebrow cranked by one (the author), not answered by another (the ecover PR lady) but actually was in part addressed already(ecover and Junkk.com).

I won't repeat my reply (actually two now) as it's in the thread on the link, but I hope it shows a real attempt to see the merits of what can often two very polarised views - that of manufacturer and campaigner - and try to navigate to a positive compromise that can satisfy some (if not all), and lead to dialogues that can make for better future solutions.

Now, where is Tesco's number?

NEWS/Commercial PR - POOH CORNER gets its latest update

Now, in true Michael Caine style, 'norralorra people know this, but...' Junkk.com does have a little place called... POOH CORNER.

It got created to 'address' matters of a more effluvial nature that are nonetheless environmentally valuable, and copped the moniker when my boys heard my talking about the topic, made a very odd connection with Christopher Robin whilst giggling 'He said poo!'. It was a while ago, but even at 12 they still fall about. Like I say... boys.

Nothing there yet, of course, because for now all goes here on the blog, but I really must get busy loading it up as, over the years, a lot has come in that would be ideal to go here.

Anyhoo... to the point.

Those nice folks at ecover, who already dominate the 'E' section of the Ideas pages, have sent us a freebie to go with a bit of worthy PR. The pack is now here and here. No ideas yet, but the cap is promising. Maybe ecover can get busy here as they have before.

The PR is here. The first bit is well worth noting. And as they are mates I've left in the 'product blurb', too (too much to pun it a shamless plug..hole?):

WORLD TOILET DAY

40% of the world's population, 2.5 billion people, don't have access to a toilet. To raise awareness of this global sanitation crisis, and to celebrate the humble yet essential Ecover bathroom cleaner [now that's something I have never seen celebrated before! - Ed], November 19th has been designated World Toilet Day.

We’re excited about World Toilet Day because it complements our three year partnership with WaterAid to provide access to safe water and sanitation in the Hintalo Wajerat area of rural Ethiopia.

For further information on Ecover’s partnership with WaterAid visit www.ecover.com/wateraid

About Ecover Ocean Waves Toilet Cleaner

As with all Ecover products, the Ocean Waves Toilet Cleaner is formulated from plant and mineral-based ingredients, biodegrading quickly and completely to ensure it has a minimal impact on aquatic life.

Telegraph - NEW - Why we shouldn't sneer at World Toilet Day

NEWS/Commercial PR - Water, water, not as everywhere as it could

Two things. Water is becoming a key aspect of our planetary future. Where it is... and isn't. Where it can be used. Or can't.

Second, as the first company to upload their product data to our second use ideas section, we have a soft spot for ecover.

They tend to walk the walk as much as (and often before) they talk the talk. So their press releases on matters eco tend to actually be worth something. All the more so when it goes hand in hand with charity. This one looks well worth supporting.

So, E&OE....

ECOVER AND WATERAID LAUNCH GROUND-BREAKING PARTNERSHIP

Ecover has launched a three-year partnership with international charity WaterAid. This partnership supports a project in Ethiopia, providing sustainable and ongoing access to safe water, sanitation and hygiene education.

Ecover and WaterAid share the objective to provide effective, sustainable solutions for the hygienic needs of people around the world, and it is this common interest that has led to the formation of the partnership. This is the first time WaterAid has worked with a business where both parties are actively working together to drive change.

The partnership will focus on the area of Hintalo Wajerat in the Tigray region where only 22% of the population currently has access to safe water and just 6% have access to adequate sanitation. More shocking is the fact that 17 out of every 100 children will die before they reach their fifth birthday. On completion of the project 14,750 people across eleven villages in the region will have access to safe water and effective sanitation.

From the end of June the partnership will be promoted on 1.5 million Ecover products across 10 lines.