With the issue of plastic pollution and how it’s harming marine life on so many people’s minds, most of us want solutions to help lessen our consumption of single use plastics…
The trouble is that the solutions we’re all hoping for don’t seem to show up on supermarket shelves, so they can be extremely hard to find! Even then, the seemingly eco friendly alternative products can turn out to be a clear case of ‘greenwashing’ - overstating just how eco friendly that product actually is!
We wanted to put together a list of the really exciting eco swaps we've seen recently, what exactly makes them so special and how they might be able to help you on your journey to a more sustainable, low waste lifestyle!
Here are the latest and greatest zero waste eco swaps for a plastic free home!
Smol!
It's only right to start this list with what's probably our favourite zero waste alternative we've swapped to recently, Smol! They're offering both laundry capsules and dishwasher tablets in completely plastic free, recyclable packaging, which the same cannot be said for any of the products we've seen in the supermarket!
What's more is that they're the most concentrated products on the market, meaning great value for money (up to 50% compared to that of others!) and the ability to be posted straight through your letter box! So, you never have to go without or rush out to the shop again!
It's tough to decide on what we love most about Smol - the innovative packaging, the convenient subscription model or the fact that their a family run business? And yet another arrow in the quiver is that they're complete cruelty free and contain fewer chemicals than the other brands! If you just cover the postage, you can try them for free with our affiliate link here!
Choose!
Another product that we've recently been able to try out is by a brand called Choose! They're offering a range of products, from hand soap and washing up liquid, to bottled water too. And all in completely natural, sustainable and vegan friendly packaging!
We were given some of their washing up liquid to try out and both the packaging and product inside definitely didn't disappoint. The bottles are made from a paper like material with a plant based lining and a metal, screw on cap. It's incredibly innovative and versatile packaging design, so it's extremely exciting to see what other products they develop next! You can check out all of their products on their website here.
Ocean Saver!
Speaking of really exciting eco swaps - Ocean Saver offer concentrated, plant-based cleaning pods that allow you to reuse your otherwise single use trigger spray bottles and save on plastic waste!
We find a lot of fun in the whole "just add water" process, from the drop of the pod to the shaking it all up! Seeing as most cleaning products on supermarket shelves are over 90% water, Ocean Saver pods can contribute fewer carbon emissions thanks to weighing less when being transported, as well as saving a bunch of space in the cupboard under the kitchen sink!
Maistic!
What we love about Maistic's products is that they're super easy swaps to make in your kitchen, and really great alternatives to the synthetic, plastic microfibre shedding sponges that you'd usually find on supermarket shelves.
Our favourite products of theirs are the all natural scrubbers and all natural cloths, which are both completely biodegradable and even compostable when they're no longer usable! You can check out our favourite Maistic products on our eco swap shop here.
Redecker!
Depending on the type of accounts you follow on Instagram, you'll likely have already seen some of Redecker's products, and more than likely wanted to show them off yourself in your own Instagram grid! They're wooden scrubbing brushes really have become a staple amongst many zero waster's cleaning toolkit, with them being built to last, but easily replaceable when they've eventually had their time.
LoofCo!
Another of our go to companies for plastic free cleaning products is Loofco! Similar to Redecker, they're offering all natural washing up brushes of extremely high quality - removing the toughest grime from any surface of any pot, pan or dish! You can check out our favourite Loofco products on our eco swap shop here.
Who Gives A Crap!
Not only are regular packs of toilet roll typically wrapped in plastic - they usually require an incredible amount of trees to be cut down too! Who Gives A Crap solve both of those problems by delivering 100% recycled toilet paper straight to your door in a recyclable cardboard box!
Who Gives A Crap is also excellent value for money with suuuuuuuuuuuuper long rolls, and they even donate 50% of their profits to help build toilets and sanitary solutions for those around the world that need them - roughly 2.3 billion people around the world are currently without toilets, and Who Gives A Crap donated almost £390,000 in 2019 alone to help end that!
Wax Food Wraps!
Used as an alternative to cling film or aluminium foil, reusable wax wraps have grown to be a really popular eco swap within the zero waste movement in recent years. Although many people swear by them, we personally haven't had much use for them and therefore haven't bought any. But even still, we think that they'd be great to have for those certain circumstances that we might.
The concept here is that wax of some kind (beeswax is most common but there's also vegan options out there) is combined with a piece of cloth... So, a simple enough concept that you can even make your own with old, worn out clothing!
Guppyfriend!
What's still relatively unknown by a majority of people is the fact that tiny plastic microfibres actually makes up a vast proportion of the pollution we're finding in our oceans - you can read more about this here. What's worse at that they're actually coming from our washing machines, and most people continue to add to the issue everyday unknowingly! A super easy solution to this is a Guppyfriend washing bag that catches most of these fibres that are shed from our synthetic clothing!
Cora Balls! Another solution to plastic microfibre pollution is a product known as a Cora Ball. Personally, we have not tried a Cora Ball, nor would we put all of our trust in one. However, we do think that there may be a place for them as part of a low waste lifestyle - particularly when used in combination with one form of microfibre filter.
Microfiber Filters!
Perhaps the most effective way to combat plastic microfibre pollution is to use a filter that attaches to your washing machine's waste water. They may be slightly more expensive options, but the Filtrol (based in the US) and Planet Care filters (based in Europe) are definitely two products that we're dying to try out!
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