How to identify real eco-friendly household products from the gimmicks?
What do bottled-water, toilet paper and light bulbs have in common? Depending on the manufacturing process or means of transport, all may or may not be eco-friendly household products. So before we go shopping for those eco-household products, we should know how to distinguish the difference between authentic green home products and faux eco products.
It seems impossible to go anywhere these days without seeing anything marketed as “eco-friendly” or touted as “being green”. For those of you who are skeptical, you’ll be happy to know you have good reason to be a cynic. But, we know that everything labeled with these words is not necessarily authentically eco.
Just because the paper located in the home printer is made of recycled paper, does not constitute it as a totally eco-friendly product. In fact, genuine green home care products exceed the sustainable and recycled elements. Authentically eco-friendly household products are manufactured and exported with a special attention to its impact on the environment as well as its sustainability.
The proof of eco-household or kitchen appliance products is in the substantiation. In other words, just because a cleaning item, says that’s its eco-friendly does not warrant the evidence. A third party certification from any agency like Energy Star is the type of validation to look for. So the next time you go shopping to stock up on eco-friendly household products, use these tips to identify the authenticity of environmentally friendly goods: Confirm the validation. Quite often, manufacturers falsely label their goods to appear eco-friendly, when they are not. For instance, certain home appliances are marked with the words, “Energy Star” registered. However, a visit to the Energy Star can validate this information. Check the product. Another nifty eco marketing gimmick is to say that a product is made out of recycled paper when it is clearly made of plastic. The only “recycled paper” is the label. This is commonly found on dishwasher detergent bottles. Confirm energy efficiency. Just because light bulbs, fixtures and household lamps have the words: “energy efficient,” it does not mean there’s any truth behind the content. Be sure to research what makes the product eco-friendly. Read between the lines. Terms like “chemical free” and “all natural” tend to be misleading eco-friendly product identifiers. Since everything is a chemical, including water, nothing is completely “chemical free.” As for the phrase “all natural,” formaldehyde, arsenic and mercury are poisonous but “all natural” elements. So at the end of the day, real-eco friendly household products exceed words, labels and ambiguous terms. The proof is in the certification, production process and actual benefits to the environment.