Here at Vavista, we’re conscious about not only the health and wellbeing of our customers, but our wonderful planet too. We are always working towards finding the best planet-friendly product alternatives. So many of our purchases are packaged in non-recyclable materials, which eventually end up in landfill.
The good news is there are plenty of household items that are friendlier to the planet. Check out our list for 5 simple swaps you can make today!
1. Soap and Shampoo bars
Using a soap bar instead of liquid soap greatly reduces the need for plastic bottles in your bathroom. It’s also believed it takes less water to produce a soap bar and soap bars have a lower carbon footprint due to a reduction in its weight for transportation [1]. You can swap out hand wash, body wash, face wash, shampoo and even conditioner for solid bar alternatives. If everyone in the UK opted for soap bars instead of plastic shampoo and bodywash bottles, think of the amount of plastic we could save.
2. Natural Sponges
By making the swap from artificial sponges to natural sponges, you will be reducing your plastic waste yet again. They’re 100% natural and 100% biodegradable. Once harvested, sea sponges are able to regrow too[2]. You can make this swap in the kitchen to clean your dishes and in the shower. Or if you want a more thorough scrub, you could also get a natural loofah in the shower. And if you want to level up even further you can grow a loofah yourself if you have the time and determination[3].
Find out how with this handy guide: Grow your own Loofah.
3. Reusable dish cloths
It’s easy to just pick up a new pack of cloths for kitchen cleaning when yours get a bit dirty. Why not switch disposable dish cloths that end up on landfill for reusable biodegradable ones? By purchasing machine washable cloths, you can save yourself some money in the long run as well as helping the planet [4].
4. Bees wax food wraps
Bees wax food wraps are a sustainable alternative to plastic food wraps such as cling film or sandwich bags. This is ideal for keeping food fresh for longer while reducing your plastic waste. By warming the wraps with your hands, the wax on the muslin become tacky making it easy to mould and seal around packaging and containers[5]. Again, if you want to be an eco-superstar, then you can easily create your own.
5. Refill Products
There is a growing number of locations around the country that offer plastic free refills for many household items from cleaning products, to rice and pasta. All with the same goal to cut down on our plastic usage[6]. You just take your own container to a refill shop, they weigh this and then weigh your container again when it’s filled to charge you for how much product you’ve taken. These shops are usually happy to take donated containers too, so if you have a pasta jar with a lid you’d like to wash out and give to them, take it with you.
We hope these tips have been helpful. Check out our blog posts for more!
[1] 10 simple steps to a more sustainable bathroom | BBC Earth
[2] Sea Sponges; A Sustainable Solution– Eco Bath London
[3] Sustainable sponges: How to grow your own loofah – BBC News
[4] Green kitchen swaps | BBC Good Food
[5] Step by step tutorial | Blue Peter makes | Plastic free – CBBC – BBC
[6] Waste reduction: ‘Refill just one bottle and cut plastic use’ – BBC News
