Ever think about what that Tide and AJAX do once they go down the drain? You might think it's no big deal, but just read the list of ingredients. Even if you don't give a second's thought to the environmental consequences of their use, is alkyl phenoxy polyethoxy ethanol an ingredient you want to be wearing next to your skin? That's purported to be an ingredient in Tide – purported because the companies are not required to list them. I just found that out too.
Better safe than sorry. But I don't really want to cultivate that hippie aroma, either. Luckily this is not the 1960's, and there are tons of options. Target carries
the nicely-designed Method brand of soaps, cleaners and detergents. While sometimes accused of being a "light green" product, they are certainly superior to most mainstream ones -- and the founders were born and bred in Michigan. Also, any Trader Joe's or Whole Foods has a plethora of choices. Even my local Spartan store carries Dr. Bronner's products, an oldie but goodie.
Or you can shop local. Detroit's Michigan Green Safe, a component of the citywide Recycle Here! drop site, carries eco-friendly household cleaning solutions of all stripes made by Eco-Products, a national company with Green Safe as its only Michigan distributor.
Additionally, the store sells disposable hot and cold cups, silverware, plates, take-away containers and trash and grocery non-plastic bags that are all made of renewable non-petroleum based products and are even compostable. There is silverware made from potatoes and some made from corn, for example. Prices are comparable to similar plastic-based products.
Green Safe also carries toilet paper, paper towels and napkins that are made from 100% recycled paper. Currently, Green Safe only sells its products on Wednesdays and Saturdays during recycling hours, but co-owner Matt Naimi is looking into a partnership with a local retailer to extend the products' availability. For a price list or to discuss bulk purchase for a business, contact Naimi's partner, Steve Harworth, at 313-871-4000 or at steve@recy-clean.com.
Metromode reader Doug Menzer wrote to tell us about the laundry system he uses and sells called LaundryPure, which actually hooks up to your washer and treats the water with silver ions. Read all about it or order one at: www.freshmenz.com.
Lastly, this might not be truly, truly green, but I always fall back on Ivory soap when I'm camping or boating. Its ingredients are sodium tallowate, sodium cocoate or sodium palm kernelate, water, sodium chloride, sodium silicate, magnesium sulfate and fragrance (I'm guessing the fragrance is the 0.56% that is not pure?).
It might not be perfect, but it's certainly better than most.
Writer: Kelli B. Kavanaugh
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