Early Learning: Zero Waste Style

It is well recognised that if you've got young kids in your life, you're guaranteed to end up with a pile of excess clutter filling their bedrooms as well as the remnants of cheap broken toys and packaging filling your bins.

So if you're lucky enough to enjoy the company of little angels, the great news is that it is becoming easier to choose a zero waste present that they will enjoy and won't impinge on the sanity of their parents. And even better, you don't have to look any further than your high street, which as far as green credentials are concerned it comes as a refreshing change.

Yes ladies and gentlemen, if you're shopping for toys this Christmas, it is well worth checking out your local Early Learning Centre.

I haven't been to our local ELC for ages but this weekend I popped in to look for an elf costume. I didn't find what I wanted but I didn't come out completely disappointed.

As I browsed the store I was cheered to see a good range of toys that didn't have packaging. Many of those that were packaged came with compostable interior card, or were in open fronted boxes with none of the usual superfluous plastic.

From a parent's perspective. the less packaging on kids' toys the better, regardless of your zero waste intentions. It means far less mess on special days such as birthdays and Christmas Day. Less time for clearing up and more time to play.

So having had a good browse around the shop, I couldn't wait to check out their website and I'm glad I did because there is some happy news...

...The Early Learning Centre, a company that is owned by Mothercare, is officially going greener....and here's the lowdown.


* 20% of their toys have no packaging

* 25% of their toys are in recyclable packaging

* All instore display signage is on recyclable material and all catalogues and leaflets are printed on FSC or recycled paper

* Their innovative 'Book Amnesty' has recycled 130,000 books

*60% of their wooden toys are now made from 'forest friendly' wood certified by the Forest Steward Council

And it doesn't stop there. The Early Learning Centre has got a cunning plan to make us even happier and the world a greener place with some major targets for 2010 to make their business even more sustainable. Here are just some of them.

*By 2010, all their wooden toys will be made from either recycled wood, bamboo, rubber wood or wood independently certified by the Forest Stewardship Council

*All packaging will be made from materials that are easy to recycle

*All cardboard packaging will be made from at least 70% recycled fibre

*They will reduce the amount of packaging by 30%

*They will cut carrier bag use by at least 30%

So, with 215 stores across the UK, this company seems to be doing its bit towards sustainable retailing. If you don't have a shop near you, you might be able to find some of the company's range of toys at your local Debenhams, Sainsbury's or Boots or even order online. Visit www.elc.co.uk for more details.

Things are starting to happen on the high street but we need more shops to follow suit, enabling people to make zero waste choices even if they don't know they're doing it. So I wonder who else will be standing out from the crowds this Christmas? If you spot a high street chain doing its bit for waste, do give them a shout-out.

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Elf Needed!

What's a mother to do? I've advertised on Freecycle, I've trawled the charity shops AND phoned a friend...well quite a few friends actually...and I am now running out of ideas.

The problem? I need an elf costume...well not for me but for my 7 year old defender of the bins, for his school play.

Yes, I know I can get one at Sainsbury's for just £8....yes just £8...but of course my Buy Nothing New month has put the spanner in the works as far as that's concerned. Besides, it seems that all the elves in Bury St Edmunds have bought out the local stock.

So, if anyone has any other ideas (sorry ain't got time to make one) or indeed has a spare outfit knocking around, I would really appreciate your help...especially as time is quickly running out. And to give you an idea of what I'm after... and I really can't believe I'm showing you this...check out the You Tube thingy I magicked up for my other blog last Christmas.



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Eco Emporia: Desirable objects from discarded things

Why is it that when you've signed up to a Buy Nothing New Month, a whole array of temptations arrives at your door?

There I was minding my own business, when an email popped into my inbox last week, bringing my attention to Eco Emporia, a new business whose strapline is "desirable objects from discarded things".

No sooner had I hopped onto their website, I found myself wanting so many items, it felt like all my Christmases were coming at once. Here's a company that is not only helping to reduce waste by repurposing discarded items into something desirable, but is also helping craftspeople to earn a living. With a personal love of crafts, I could have committed my credit card to so many things, especially the funky chicken shown above that's made from plastic bags. There's something about my quirky taste that somehow finds it appealing.

So not being in a position to shop until December, I thought I'd stick the chicken on my Christmas list and instead of splashing the cash, spend some time catching up with co-founder Anna Burns to find out more about her new venture.

What inspired you to set up the company?

"Like many businesses, my husband Peter and I came up with the idea for an eco gift company by identifying a problem. We were becoming greener at home - reducing, reusing and recycling, but when it came to looking for Christmas presents in 2005, we struggled to find suitable things that were both eco-friendly and desirable too.

At that time many of the green stores offered only functional products or 'eco-gadgets' as gift ideas. For us they weren't attractive enough. So we'd identified a gap in the market for an online company specialising in desirable eco-friendly gifts. Our entrepreneurial plans had to be put on hold though, because we'd just got married and were about to embark on a year long honeymoon travelling around the world.

That year away gave us the chance to dream about our business idea and to get inspired by seeing craftspeople who reused and recycled as a way of life. We had a 'eureka' moment in Australia when we wandered into an art gallery exhibiting recycled crafts from South Africa. We were excited by the creativity and amazing stories behind the products and the people who made them, and this really helped us to focus on our niche market of handmade recycled gifts."


What is your favourite product and why?

"I really do love all of our products so it's difficult to pick a favourite, but the ones which appeal to me most are those which are ingenious yet simple in design. Like Darrell & Julia Gibbs's Rescued Paper Notebooks where each page is made from a sheet of waste paper with the printed side folded in on itself to make two sides of blank paper to write on.

I also love fun products that make me smile like Lorraine Berkshire-Roe's quirky papier-mache tea-cups which even have bubbles painted in the 'tea'."



What sustainable packaging do you use when sending gorgeous items like this to your customers?

"All of our packaging is made from recycled, reclaimed or biodegradable materials. Some of the outer cardboard packaging we use has been made by refurbishing larger, solar panel boxes and making them into smaller cartons just right for posting. We've sourced biodegradable bubble-wrap which we use sparingly when needed and all our tissue paper is 100% recycled.


Smaller items like earrings are packaged in little gift bags I've made myself using pages from old unsaleable charity shop novels. Other items are wrapped in tissue and dressed up with a decorative book page pinwheel, made by me too.

Every item comes with an information card about Eco Emporia and a card telling the recipient more about the product's past life and the craftsperson who made it. We offer an optional gift message and we've had great feedback from customers and gift recipients who love these extra handmade touches."


I've read that you manage your business affairs in an environmentally-friendly way too. What would be your top tip for any other small business wishing to reduce its waste?

"Do all your business online to help reduce the amount of paper you send out and receive. We store all our documents digitally, use an online bank and we don't print anything unless we really need to. Even then it's on 100% recycled paper and we print on both sides."


So if you're still pondering what to get your friends for Christmas, it really is worth a visit over to Eco Emporia to pick up a few ideas, with the full guarantee that you'll have a zero waste present. You might even be inspired to make something yourself using their easy-to-follow instructions.

I'd like to say a huge thank you to Anna for sharing some of her time last week. Now, I mustn't forget to tell Mr A about that chicken. For more details visit www.ecoemporia.com

Alara Foods - the UK's first Zero Waste food manufacturer

News from MRW has revealed that Alara Foods, based in Camden London are the first UK food manufacturer to become a Zero Waste company.

The UK's main organic muesli producer set itself the goal of Zero Waste three years ago and has now achieved this. The company now throws nothing away, illustrating that it's possible for a company, even a food producer to achieve a zero waste business and manufacturing process. Everything is recycled, composted or reused, including hard-to-recycle polystyrene, which is reused for packing.

As well as managing its in-house zero-waste processes, the company has also re-evaluated its consumer packaging and has chosen to pack all its new products in paper bags instead of using the traditional bag-in-box production.

So if you are looking for a zero waste breakfast, which not just supports slimming your own bin, but gives a thumbs up to the oft-forgotten process of sustainable manufacturing, Alara products are the way to go.

To find your local retailer, check out Alara's online directory. And if you don't have a shop nearby, the good news is that the company also has an online store.

More information on Alara's recycling policy can be found at the company's website.

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Fishy business

According to news in today's Sunday Telegraph, the Conservatives have unveiled proposals to bring an end to what they refer to as "scandalous waste" in the fishing sector, hoping to change current EU policy.

To protect fish stocks, the EU Common Fisheries Policy currently enforces a limit on the number of fish that fishermen are allowed to catch and bans crews from landing any fish outside the quotas, forcing fishermen to throw them back into the sea, even if they have died during the fishing process.

The Telegraph reports the shocking statistic revealed by Bill Wiggin, the shadow fisheries minister who is quoted as saying "For every cod we buy in our local fish and chip shop another fish is being chucked back into the sea due to a system that is immoral and environmentally wrong".

Hear-hear!

The Tories are now seeking EU support for a pilot that would enable fishing crews to actually sell "over-quota" fish with the revenue shared between fishermen and the Government, allowing the profits to be reinvested back into the fishing industry. And it looks like the Conservatives are confident that the EU will accept their proposals.

If so, it will add to the sea of change which has already seen a U-turn by the EU allowing knobbly carrots and bendy cucumbers to return to the shops.

Thank goodness. At last is seems that our very bonkers world is getting less bonkers by the day, a slow process but good news all the same.

Who knows, one day even bananas might get a reprieve.
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Your very own DIY Island

With the economy in crisis, the housing market taking a dip and sales of recyclates going down the pan, thanks to a tip-off from blog reader Simon, over at UV Artist, I think I've found the solution....




Right, I'm off to raid the recycling centre....

I'll be away for a while, not building an island quite yet but working towards my looming deadlines, so please feel free to chat amongst yourselves. And don't forget Jo Beaufoix will be hosting the Carnival of Trash tomorrow, so do pop over to www.jobeaufoix.com to say hello.

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Do you ever stare at the broccoli?

Do you ever catch yourself staring at the broccoli, the avocado or even the melon?

You know the kind of thing... by the time you've bunged it in your trolley, carted it home and put it in the fridge you've gone off the idea altogether. If your taste buds don't play tricks on you, the social gremlins soon will, tempting you to change your plans at a drop of a hat.

And you end up staring at what was once your object of culinary desire and watch it slowly wilt and wither. You know you should eat it, but somehow you lose your appetite for something so limp and off-colour.

Well...if you live in a disorganised house like mine, with a bunch of faddy eaters, and where there are more comings and goings than the local hostelry, help is on hand...

....in the form of a little gadget called the Fresh Pod. Here it is...all lovely and green....as is the broccoli!


I bought that Broccoli (or Calabrese as it's known on the market - we're posh here you know) well over a week ago, hoping to have it for a Sunday lunch...but yes but no but didn't!

Now I don't normally go for gadgets, but as the Fresh Pod is sold by a local company based in Thetford and I'd heard such good things about them I thought I'd give it a try. After all, in the current economy and wanting to make every effort to reduce food waste in what is my haphazard life, who could blame me. When I rang up to find out about it it, Colin, one of the co-directors kindly offered to drop one off for me to try out. And I am so glad he did.

The pod sits in a refrigerator salad draw or in a fruit bowl and works by removing the ethylene gas given off fruit and vegetables as they ripen. By removing this gas from the environment the ageing and ripening process is slowed, keeping fruit and vegetables fresh for up to 4 times longer than normal. The Fresh Pod sachets also have the added benefit in that as well as controlling ethylene gas, research has proven it also kills bacteria, viruses, fungi and moulds found in fridges.

The sachets last six months after which time they need to be replaced. However, the contents of the sachets are recyclable and make a great fertilizer sprinkled on pot plants or in the garden when no longer of use in the fridge.

So for a gal who's not really into gadgets, that's me very much convinced. Okay, there is a small amount of packaging that can't be recycled, but I'm told they're working on that and it's neither here nor there when it comes to my veggies.

So thanks to Colin and Fresh Pod, the future looks firmly green instead of floppy yellow.

And yes, I still stare at the broccoli, but only in amazement.

And I promise I'll get round to eating it before the month is out! In fact, I'll have it for lunch THIS Sunday.



For more info about the Fresh Pod, visit www.freshpod.co.uk.

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