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Green Guide for New Businesses
http://www.business.gov/start/green-business/green-guide.html

Guide to Work.com Guide: How To Green Your Business\
http://www.business.com/guides/workcom-guide-how-to-green-your-business-2944/

What is post-consumer recycled content?

 

What is the difference between recycled-content and post-consumer recycled content?

A recycled-content product is an item that contains recovered materials. Recovered materials are wastes that have been diverted from conventional disposal such as landfills for another use. Recovered materials include both pre-consumer and post-consumer wastes.

Pre-consumer materials are generated by manufacturers and processors, and may consist of scrap, trimmings and other by-products that were never used in the consumer market.

Post-consumer material is an end product that has completed its life cycle as a consumer item and would otherwise have been disposed of as a solid waste. Post-consumer materials include recyclables collected in commercial and residential recycling programs, such as office paper, cardboard, aluminum cans, plastics and metals.

Recycled-content products may contain some pre-consumer waste, some post-consumer waste or both. A product does not have to contain 100 percent recovered materials to be considered “recycled,” but clearly the higher the percentage of recycled content, the greater the amount of waste that is diverted from disposal. Always look at the level of post-consumer recycled content in a product.

Does the recycling symbol on consumer products mean the item is made from recycled materials or that the item can be recycled?

The recycling logo does not necessarily mean either. The use of the recycling logo is not regulated by law. If the label only says recycle or recyclable it may contain no recycled content. It also may not be possible to recycle that item in your area.

To ensure you are buying a product made from recycled materials check the label for words that indicate the product is made from recycled materials. When buying materials, look for labels that indicate the highest percentage of post consumer recycled content.

*Taken from www.oregonmetro.com

 

Recycled product myths

 False: Recycled products are inferior in quality

Recycled products have the same quality, reliability, and dependability. A 1996 survey by the Buy Recycled Business Alliance asked hundreds of corporate purchasing agents about their satisfaction with recycled content products. The survey results showed that 97% of respondents were pleased with the performance of recycled content products.

False: Recycled products are hard to find

Thousands of products are now made with some recycled content. All steel and most glass and aluminum made in the United States has recycled content. Many paper products, including white printer paper have recycled content. Clothes, purses, tool boxes, and many other items are also made with recycled materials.

False: Recycled paper gets stuck in copiers and printers

Technological advances have overcome quality issues, while increased consumer demand is resulting wider variety and availability, and lower prices. Recycled content papers now share the same printing and performance characteristics as their virgin equivalent. Recycled paper is available in a wide range of colors, weights, and styles, including the brightest whites. They also offer the same level of runnability and high quality imaging on copiers, and laser and ink jet printers.

False: Recycled products cost more

This used to be the case for some materials, but now many recycled products are priced competitively with those made from virgin materials and in some cases are even cheaper. Demand has lowered prices, and if you continue to purchase products made with recycled materials, this trend will continue.

*Taken from www.oregonmetro.com

Organic Cotton Facts
What is "organic cotton?" Organic cotton is grown using methods and materials that have a low impact on the environment. Organic production systems replenish and maintain soil fertility, reduce the use of toxic and persistent pesticides and fertilizers, and build biologically diverse agriculture. All cotton sold as organic in the United States must meet strict federal regulations covering how the cotton is grown. How much organic cotton is grown globally? Organic cotton grown by farmers worldwide increased 152 percent during the 2007-2008 crop year, according to the Organic Cotton Farm and Fiber Report 2008 released by Organic Exchange. As a result, organic cotton production reached 145,872 metric tons (MT), equaling 668,581 bales, grown on 161,000 hectares in 22 countries. How much organic cotton is grown in the U.S.?  In 2008, U.S. acreage planted with organic cotton increased for second straight year, according to research compiled by the Organic Trade Association (OTA). Analysis of available data found that the total acres planted in organic cotton grew from 8,510 in 2007 to 9,279 in 2008, constituting a nine percent increase. How is the apparel industry involved with organic cotton? Apparel companies are developing programs that either use 100 percent organically grown cotton, or blend small percentages of organic cotton with conventional cotton in their products. There are a number of companies driving the expanded use of domestic and international organic cotton. For a current list of OTA members with fiber products, visit The Organic Pages Online™ at http://www.ota.com/. ©Organic Trade Association, Updated February 2009 Recycled PET-A Sustainable Path for Plastic     While recycling is not the end-all, be-all solution for ridding the world of the plastic bag beast, it's a sustainable path for plastic products. Why Recycled makes sense PET Approximately 31% of plastic bottles produced in the United States are made from a material called PolyEthylene Terephtalate, "PET" or "PETE." Usually clear or green, the plastic is mostly used for consumer goods such as soda bottles and food jars. According to the National Association for PET Container Resources (NAPCOR), in 2005 United States manufacturers produced 5.075 billion pounds of PET products. Such a high production rate makes finding uses for post-consumer plastics imperative. If the current rate of manufacturing and consumer recycling remains, 40 billion pounds of PET waste will be added to our landfills within only a decade. Background In the late 1970s, only a few years after PET entered the United States marketplace, forward-thinking companies found the means to transform recycled PET into many useful products - the most common being packaging (such as new bottles) and fiber (carpet and other textile) applications. Other companies followed suit, and by the late 1990s were finding uses for over 1/2 billion pounds of recycled PET per year. Products made of Recycled PET include blankets, belts, shoes, insulation, and even car parts. In 1987 the Society of the Plastics Industry (SPI) labeled PET with resin code "#1" and created the easily recognizable "chasing arrows" symbol so that consumers would know that products made from this material were recyclable. Recycled PET Lifecycle PET is recycled after consumption. After consumer recyclables have been collected and sorted by type at recycling centers, PET products are crushed, pressed into bales, shredded, and refined into PET flakes. These flakes are transformed into the raw materials that innovative companies transform into new products.