I love it when we find customers who support our environmental causes, and nothing fills me with as much joy a when I find other brands using sustainable frameworks like we do. Whenever we come across brands that share our mission of saving the planet, everyone working on our team at goodsheet.com.au is even more motivated to walk that extra mile for our cause.
Luckily, the number of environmentally-friendly and sustainable businesses keeps growing daily. It’s almost impossible to list every single sustainable business on the planet, but here are some of the companies who inspired us.
Notpla is a sustainable packaging startup founded in 2014. Notpla was created when a group of chemists, engineers, designers, and entrepreneurs got together and created an advanced sustainable packaging solution. The result? They came up with Ooho, a biodegradable packaging made from brown seaweed that can be used for loads of things from condiments to beverages. Made from brown seaweed which is a renewable natural resource, Ooho packaging is the answer to single-use plastic packaging, from shop to home and every other stop on the product’s the journey. The best part about it is that’s also edible!
Using plants as an ingredient, Apeel came up with its ingenious plant-based packaging solution using ingredients found in peels. Their packaging solution - also named Apeel, can be used to cover fruit and vegetables instead of using the traditional shrinkwraps or other plastic-derived products. By doing so, the coating slows down the loss of water as well as oxidation, and increases the shelf-live of the products and keeping them as fresh as they were at harvesting. By using Apeel, one of their customers, a cucumber supplier, was able to eliminate more than 30 thousand kilograms of shrink wrap used annually!
One of the biggest contributors to the environmental crisis is none other than our beloved meat industry. For a meat-lover, thinking about a future without meat is just about impossible to think about,, but thanks to Beyond Meat, no one has to go through the struggle anymore. Beyond Meat has shaken up the world with their latest creations: plant-based “meat” products that are just better for you, the animals, climate change, and the environment. If you’re worried about the taste, you’ll be glad to know that it tastes just like any other burger, piece of chicken or sausage you’ve ever had!
Apparently someone does, or else they wouldn’t have gone above and beyond to develop this amazing solution. Who Gives a Crap came up with an integral solution needed in every household: environmentally friendly toilet paper. This toilet paper is completely plastic-free and so are their other paper products which are made either from 100% bamboo or 100% recycled paper. To go the extra mile, they donate 50% of their profits to help build toilets for various local communities around the world.
In case you still haven’t heard the name, Patagonia is one of the giants when it comes to activewear. This giant retailer sells everything adventurous, starting with sleeping bags to fleece to snow gear. It only makes sense that these adventurous souls are the ones who live in nature for the most part, and that’s why they’re more eco-conscious than most. Their corporate philosophy is all about sustainability and going green and actively living it themselves: they’ve built repair centers around the globe to repair their products and increase their longevity, pledged $10 million of their Black Friday sales to environmental activists who are working to preserve the planet, and even admitted their shortcomings when it comes to using fossil fuels, taking accountability to make improvements.
Green Toys are the answer to every sustainability-conscious mum’s efforts to make a difference. Toys that are made without an ounce of plastic and are every bit as hardy as plastic toys. Every parent knows that getting toys is one of the parental essential duties!, Although most toys are made from plastic and non-recyclable materials, Green Toys save the day with their toys that are made from 100% recycled materials. Even the printing on the toys and packaging is done using soy ink.
It’s a shame they're not as well-known as other energy providers, seeing as how Wipro EcoEnergy is shaking up the energy operations and efficiency management industries. Their modular solutions aim at reducing an enterprise’s carbon footprint and energy waste, which in turn and saves their customers a ton of money. They also play a great role in serving the environment, as their solutions have managed to save over 1.5 billion kWh - that is the equivalent of removing 222,600 cars off the road for a whole year.
PELA have made it their life’s mission to create 100% biodegradable products. Their goal is to make these products the new norm, so people will stop using plastic and switch to biodegradable products as a matter of course. They started with developing a 100% biodegradable phone case and expanded to include sunglasses, AirPod cases, and smartwatch bands. They pride themselves that all their products are 100% biodegradable and free of BPA, phthalates, cadmium, and lead. If you take a look at their products, your heart will flutter at how cute and creative their designs are.
- IKEA
IKEA was ranked among the top 100 World’s Most Valuable Brands in 2021. With 422 stores operating in more than 50 global markets, it holds a brand value of $21 billion. But if someone asked you about their environmental efforts, you would never guess that they own more than 240,000 solar panels and 100+ wind turbines. Not only that, but they’re also buying 125,000 acres of forests to maintain a sustainable wood supply for their products. Although their physical footprint is expanding, the company is revolving its strategy around “climate positive” sustainability, especially after the pandemic. They’re investing an additional $220 million on green energy and reforestation projects, and they plan to remove more greenhouse gas emissions from the atmosphere as part of their sustainability program going forward to 2030.
Bamboo bedding company, Ettitude, make the most divinely soft and silky bed sheets with a difference. They use what they term CleanBamboo. Meaning the bamboo they source and process is organic and when processed uses non-toxic chemicals. This is obviously good for the pplanet, but also the workers making the fabric and sheets. They use 70% of the plant and compost the other 30%, enduring nothing is wasted. Recently they also became a B Corp, which as a brand owner we know is a significant feat!
Disposable plastic straws are among the top ten plastic products found discarded on beaches. They’re also responsible for the death of thousands of animals and fish. Appalled by these statistics, YesStraws decided they needed to do something to alleviate this awful situation and came up with an eco-friendly plastic-straw alternative. They used natural and renewable materials, like wheat and cane stems, to create 100% biodegradable straws. Their straws allow you to drink comfortably, and their branding helps to educating local communities about pro-environmental lifestyles.
The fashion and beauty sector used to be so far away from environmental circles, but, thankfully, that is gradually changing. Just like there are various fashion brands who are becoming more ecologically-conscious, a few cosmetics brands have risen to the challenge as well. Lush Cosmetics is one of those eco-friendly cosmetics brands, and its popularity is steadily rising all around the globe. Their mission is to show everyone that they can get the same beauty effects using all-natural ingredients, ones without any dangerous chemicals in them or have been tested on animals first. Super creative as a company, they went from creating solid shampoo bars that don’t need plastic containers to reusable tubs that earn its owner rewards the more its used.
This inspiring company are tackling the single use plastic market in a whole new way by creating plastics with an organic additive that help it break down 90% faster than regular plastic when disposed of in a landfill situation. Their products can also be home and industrially composted too with no chance of creating microplastics while they degrade. AMAZING!
Some of these brands completely rely on the circular economy model to operate, while others are working their way towards it. Even if a brand is guilty of having its share of greenhouse gas emissions, pointing fingers will do little to solve the problem. What matters most is what they’re currently doing and what they’re willing to do about it and their transparency along the way, that’s how I judge the credibility and authenticity of any brand. If you’re running a brand and unsure where to start with your sustainability efforts, be sure to reach out! They are so many entities willing to help, and we’d love to welcome you to our ever-growing environmentally-conscious community.
References
A sustainable IKEA. (n.d.). Ikea.Com. Retrieved from https://www.ikea.com/us/en/this-is-ikea/about-us/a-sustainable-ikea-pubfa9dcf80
Apeel. (n.d.). Apeel.Com. Retrieved from https://www.apeel.com/
Hodgson, S. (2019, September 26). Green brands: Eco friendly companies to learn from. Fabrik Brands. https://fabrikbrands.com/eco-friendly-companies/
IKEA to invest $220 million into becoming “climate positive.” (n.d.). Greenbiz.Com. Retrieved from https://www.greenbiz.com/article/ikea-invest-220-million-becoming-climate-positive
Liv Birdsall, U. T. (2021, August 10). It’s National Recycling Day—here are 25 sustainable brands to shop right now. USA Today. https://www.usatoday.com/story/money/reviewed/2021/08/10/25-incredible-sustainable-brands-shop/5551606001/
Shoulberg, W. (2021, January 28). Ikea’s new sustainability plans should make competitors green with envy. Businessofhome.Com. https://businessofhome.com/articles/ikea-new-sustainability-plans-should-make-competitors-green-with-envy
Sownie, C. (2020, November 25). 11 eco-friendly brands that put the planet first. 99designs. https://99designs.com/blog/business/eco-friendly-brands/
Staff Guide. (2022, January 14). 11 Eco-friendly clothing brands that respect our planet. The Good Trade. https://www.thegoodtrade.com/features/eco-friendly-clothing-brands
Technology. (2019, April 15). Notpla. https://www.notpla.com/technology-2/
Zepeda, M. (2020, May 25). The 10 most environmentally friendly & sustainable companies (2021). Grow Ensemble. https://growensemble.com/environmentally-friendly-companies/