According to the Cradle-to-cradle principle, a design method that looks at a product through five quality categories — material health, material reutilization, renewable energy and carbon management, water stewardship, and social fairness — all materials should belong to either a Biological or a Technical Cycle. The first group includes all materials that in the after-use stage enter a regenerative biological process such as organic waste that can become green energy and/or clean fertilizer or biochar. On the other hand, in the technical cycle we don’t find a biological regeneration process and therefore elements need to be processed or transformed to stay in the utilization loop and to not end up in landfills or pollute our environment in a different way. Therefore, when looking for sustainable product brands, we want to pick companies that use renewable, low impact, or recycled materials as alternative inputs to the production of virgin materials.
Considering the vast amount of products available, we will look into those industries that have a major impact on resource depletion and waste generation.
Phones, laptops, small and large appliances; electronics are present in many aspects of our lives. However, the high demand for rare metals and the inadequate management of e-waste represent main issues for this industry.
Unfortunately, violation of human rights is still a widespread problem in the metals and mining industry. Some brand of electronics, however, have started to put pressure on their suppliers' transparency when it comes to the source of raw materials and working conditions for employees. Amnesty International has recently published a ranking of those doing better.
Due to the hazardous materials - such as toxins and carcinogenic materials - they can contain, e-waste is considered to be one of the main sources of pollution. Furthermore, e-waste feeds a large share of informal businesses, especially in low-income countries, where it has devastating effects on the environment and on people’s health.
As consumers, the best we could do is choosing brands that offer buy-back services, good and fair repair service and making sure there is no planned obsolescence for that device.
With the rise of fast fashion and cheap clothing, the Fashion Industry has become one of the most polluting industries on the planet in terms of virgin resources demand, mistreating of animals, working conditions and waste production. However, things are moving forward, and alternatives for sustainable textiles and clothing are becoming available in the market.
There are many factors at play that make material more or less sustainable. The first distinction is between Natural and Synthetic (or oil derived) materials. But don’t be fooled. Natural fibres can only be considered as sustainable if organically farmed. Take cotton for example the most used natural fiber in the market is considered to have a higher environmental impact (see Higg Index) compared to many synthetic fibres. That is due to the large number of chemicals and toxic pesticides and fertilizers used in the farming stage. Organic cotton instead, uses 88% less water and 62% less energy compared to the traditional one and 100% less chemical fertilizers and no pesticides.
To make sure you are buying organic cotton, look for the certification. The Global Organic Textile Standard (GOTS), for example, is the most recognised of the growing number of organic textiles certifications and looks at the whole processing of the material regulating also the label of the garment.
Polyester is a synthetic fibre and the one with the largest market share. It became widely popular thanks to its low manufacturing cost leading to a reduction of clothing prices. Today it covers 51% of the total fibres’ market. It is a plastic-based fiber, and mostly a sub-product of oil, with a large environmental impact during both production and use phases. Currently, the largest issue with plastic-based fibers it’s the fact that during usage and washing they release microfibers. Microfibers are tiny pieces of plastic that are one of the largest causes of ocean pollution, with 500 million tonnes reaching the ocean every year, and that ends up back in our stomach through the fish we eat.
Another well-known material is Viscose or Rayon. This is an artificial or man-made material produced using natural cellulose fibers coming mostly from wood pulp, bamboo and eucalyptus. As a downside, however, large amounts of toxic chemicals are used in the production process; a fact that raises serious questions about the sustainability of the material.
Viscose is mostly produced in Asia and dumping in waterways of chemicals used during production is common. A practice that has devastating effects on the environment (here more). However, you can find some companies which use certified wood and recover 100% of chemicals used making this material more sustainable.
Recycled materials would be a great solution to reduce the need for virgin resources, however, technology isn’t quite there yet. For example, recycled polyester is currently obtained by downcycling PET bottles or from ocean plastic and not from other clothes. Nevertheless, it still reduces the need for virgin material, so if you really can’t help buying this material, this is at least a better alternative.
As a general guideline always looks for brands which are transparent in their supply chain and which voluntarily take action to improve their environmental performances. Avoid companies that claim 100% sustainability of their product as there is no such thing in fashion yet and also those that claim 100% recycled products. You can also trust third party supply chain certifiers such as Good on You or Provenance.
Fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) are products that are sold quickly and at a relatively low cost. This industry includes products which we consume on a daily basis, from food to detergents, to personal care and household products that come in packaging. In 2020, the average European citizen generates 173 kg of waste from packaging only.
Personal Care products make up for a large share of FMCGs. The debate here is between chemicals based products, mostly produced by large pharmaceutical companies, and plant-based alternatives and their packaging. The issue with chemical products is their origin since they are mostly derived from fossil fuels. Fact is, they pollute the environment at every stage of their lifecycle, from production to use. In this articleare listed some of the chemicals we most frequently find in personal care products and the environmental risks related to them, including the impact of packaging.
In general, some of the features choosing personal care products that are Biodegradable, Vegan, Cruelty-Free, No Added Fragrance, Non-GMO, Non-Toxic, and Organic. How to do it? Here you have a few alternatives. If you are buying from large brands look for certified products. Otherwise go for small, local producers. You’ll be more likely to know the real content of the products. Last resort, with a growing share of interest, if you have enough time you can DIY them at home. You’ll discover that it is fairly easy and a fun thing to do.
Food industry has a quite large environmental impact too. It accounts for almost 30% of greenhouse gas emissions and has an astonishing 33% of waste generation, that in developed countries happens mostly at the end of the supply chain (retail and consumer level).
As consumers, we can take our responsibility and buy local, organic and seasonal food as much as possible, and reduce our generation of food waste. It is also more sustainable - and healthier! - to buy less (ultra)processed food and to buy food which is organically certified (i.e. EU organic logo or Demeter certifications). Reducing the amount of meat is also an eco-friendly choice; but if you really can’t quit eating meat, at least make sure that you buy pasture-raised meat, as that has the lowest environmental impact and the best conditions for the animal. Also, choosing chicken instead of pork or beef and using organic oat, coconut, or soy milk instead of cow milk reduces your impact on the environment.
When it comes to dry food the global enemy is PALM OIL. There are many contradictory opinions at the moment on whether it can be sustainable or not even though exists a Sustainable Palm Oil label. What is sure, however, is that forests in South America and Indonesia burn at incredible rates and keep being replaced by palm oil plantation. If you still want to buy palm oil-based products, have a look at this WWF Scorecard and make your choice.
As always, our suggestion is to start with one step at the time. You could, for example, start by taking a product which you use often and look for a more sustainable alternative, possibly locally-sourced. Amongst the benefits, you will reduce your ecological footprint and even help your local community (a win-win solution!)