This chestnut of a topic is well worn, shiny and wizened enough that we should all know what makes an eco consious product. Well, you would think so, but I remain unconvinced that manufacturers are looking at the whole chestnut. Instead, maybe they are looking at the mildly poisonous (to humans) horse chestnut. Who ever knew chestnuts where so complicated? Turns out they are much like the eco label and women (sorry ladies but some of you are)… complicated.
What the hell am I on about? The following words will explain, enlighten and unfurl the big picture. I will now attempt to bullet point what you need to consider as eco. The important points as I see them, then you can leave these words equipped to work out if the product has true value from the eco standpoint.
Shipping. That thing that we don't consider. If its cheap and we get that nice feeling at the checkout, is that enough?
Production
I will not name names or products as this is not a poo flinging contest but this is the most publicized and well used part of the eco argument. This is the part that companies ‘sell’ to you with. For example, let’s say that you are buying boardshorts made out of recycled car tyres (not an actual product). This fact has to be true, you can’t tell someone something is black if it is white. If the boardshorts in question are made of car tyres, they probably are.
A good question to ask or find would be how much of them are made of car tyres. Is it a meaningful amount. Or are they 2.5% car tyre just to sell you on the gimmick? Leaving the other 97.5% made out of the usual non-eco material.
That old chestnut again. Or is it a horse chestnut?
Another good question might be, what about the production or in this case recycling process of the car tyre? Sometimes the process of recycling said car tyre might be more harmful than the actual benefit of helping rid the world of used wheel rubber.
Ethics
Quite a few companies put an emphasis on ‘fair wage’ policies and this is an issue that is important to all of us but does it add to the eco argument? I am not convinced. It is something we need to think about and incorporate into production but this is more about philanthropy than eco as I see it.
Sourcing of Raw Materials
Let’s switch it up and forget the car tyre boardies. Let’s use the more ridiculous analogy of a wetsuit that is made out of 99% wood. We have done away with the aforementioned percentage. We know its 99% wood but where does the wood come from? Does it come from sustainably responsible farming like FSC certified forests (an actual thing). Forest Stewardship Council certified trees have to be sustainably grown, harvested and watered with only ambient rainfall.
A good example. Filp flops / slaps /thongs made from old car tyres.
An awesome idea but run through the bullet points and be informed about how eco they are.
The above is an example but you get the idea. Where do the raw materials come from, this is as important as the production side of things. No point giving with the right hand and taking with the left.
Transportation
This is my favourite, as I see it the most overlooked and possibly the most relevant. This little gem will really split the chestnut from its poisonous and unassuming cousin, the horse chestnut.
Enough with the chestnuts now. Let’s go back to the car tyre boardies for a second. Let’s say they are 99% car tyres (great) and that the car tyres are grown in FSC approved forests (great and also impossible), let’s also say that the workers get paid more than Jordy Smith (great, he gets paid quite well).
Notox Surfboards have the right idea.
Instead of shipping their eco flax surfboards to Aus from France they have started production there. Simple.
The final piece of the puzzle then is this. Where are the boardies made in relation to your global location? Is it a continent away, the other side of the world? Transporting an item any distance will (on the whole) leave a huge environmental wake which will often leave the product with zero or less than zero real eco value. Don’t take my word for it, you all have the same access to the internet as I do, check it out. You will be surprised at the findings.
The International Martime Organization (IMO) found that in 2012 3.5% to 4% of all climate change emissions were generated by shipping, this figure was projected to grow at a rate of between 50 to 250% by 2050 if no action was taken. There are more than 100, 000 transport ships at sea at any given moment and the majority use the top offender, the diesel engine.
To Sum Up
The bottom line is there is no ‘perfect answer’ and the purpose of these words is not to slam any one company for trying. Trying is great, but making a marked and informed decision to provide a truly sustainable product is quite different.
My umbridge comes from tag lines that sell you a ‘gimmick’ so the big bucks can make more bucks while the whole time not making any real difference. It’s not a lie, just the emission of certain facts.
This has been an opinionated message and I want to thank you for staying with this temper tantrum of key stokes. The message is to think before you buy, use these bullet points and get the whole picture correct before you purchase your chestnuts.
What makes an eco product, er, eco.
The FSC sticker. Its hard to abtain but assures you of a responsibly managed harvest and production.
A good example. Filp flops / slaps /thongs made from old car tyres.
An awesome idea but run through the bullet points and be informed about how eco they are.
That old chestnut again. Or is it a horse chestnut?
Shipping. That thing that we don't consider. If its cheap and we get that nice feeling at the checkout, is that enough?
Notox Surfboards have the right idea.
Instead of shipping their eco flax surfboards to Aus from France they have started production there. Simple.