September is Ovarian Cancer Awareness Month and it’s an important month to recognize as 22,000 women will be diagnosed with ovarian cancer this year. That’s a shockingly high number of women who will be affect by ovarian cancer and unfortunately many women have no idea about the risk factors, support options, or issues surrounding this topic.

Because of this, Seventh Generation has teamed up with the Ovarian Cancer Research Fund (OCRF) to dedicate one day as “Let’s Talk… Period” Day which aims to place more focus on this important issue and to educate women about ovarian cancer. Another goal of this event is to raise the donations needed to help educate women on the signs of ovarian cancer.

If you go to the “Let’s Talk… Period” Day website on September 1st (yes tomorrow) and register your email address, Seventh Generation will make a $1 donation to the OCRF, with an overall donation of $22,000 representing the women that will be diagnosed this year. The website has information on ovarian cancer signs, symptoms, risk factors and prevention, because the best way of prevention is through education.

As a thank you for logging in and participating, Seventh Generation will be giving each registrant a coupon for their organic cotton tampons that are not bleached with chlorine, free of rayon and don’t contain added perfumes or dyes. See the video below to find out what’s in most tampons…

How about some green giveaway reminders for the weekend? Yes… good? I thought so.

Here at Tree Hugging Family you’ve got two days left to enter to win a copy of the DVD DisneyNature: Earth, which also includes a special feature, Earth Diaries: The Making Of The Movie. We’ve had a lot of entries but I’ve got three to giveaway, so that ups your luck odds. I’m sure you being green on a daily basis ups your karma odds of winning too

Over at Inhabitots you can win a super styling chalkboard tee for that special little doodler in your world. Yes you can write on them then wipe them clean and start again. Very cool.

EcoHuddle is giving away an excellent Citizenpip lunch kit. This is an awesome prize; an all inclusive, adorable, reusable, waste-free lunch kit. I like the Citizenpip kits a lot. Read my review of this lunch kit or simply go enter to win.

Good luck!

The other day I posted about Huggies insane (and lame) attempt at green diapers. They did a really bad job, missing the mark completely. However, there are plenty of actual eco-friendly diapers around, ones that make more sense that Huggies.

FIRST DO YOUR RESEARCH:

Green Mountain Diapers: Offers the best 411 on reusable diapers. From traditional prefold cloth diapers, to tiny newborn cloth choices, to cloth diaper covers; you’ll get useful info on all of them. The Green Mountain Diaper website also includes cloth diaper FAQs, reviews, and how-to wash guides; all perfect for a new user of cloth diapers. Our friends at Green Baby Guide don’t just blog about diapers, but they do often, so it’s a great place for newbies to reusable diaper options and other green baby issues.

Coming up…

GO DIAPER FREE

TRADITIONAL PREFOLD & FLAT DIAPERS

NON BIODEGRADABLE ECO-DISPOSABLES

THE HYBRID

ALL-IN-ONE CLOTH DIAPERS

By now I’m sure you’ve been following the SIGG has BPA in their old liners story; especially if you had a SIGG Water Bottle. BUT just in case you missed anything…

• Way to go with the BPA SIGG!
• Giving up on SIGG – which bottle to choose

Now I thought I’d update.

I didn’t email them because I never owned a SIGG. However as noted previously, my ex Tree Hugging Family co-blogger Peggy did have a SIGG and was pretty mad when this SIGG story broke. She did email them and got a lovely form letter back which places the blame not on SIGG but on some “third party” character. Nice. Sifting the blame is always smart. Lordy.

In any case, Peggy also notes that in order to get a new BPA free SIGG Water Bottle the company wants you to send your old bottle back. You can’t just send a receipt. You have to send the whole darn bottle back then they’ll send you a new one back, which is a killer way to create lots of extra emissions.

Peggy makes some other excellent points in her post at Light Green Stairs about why you might not want to even deal with this company anymore. Go read her post!

[image via stock.xchng]

Just a reminder; you’ve got about a week left to enter to win a copy of DisneyNature: Earth on DVD. If you haven’t entered yet, you’re missing out. Disney Home Entertainment is giving three readers a copy of the movie DisneyNature: Earth, which also includes a special feature, Earth Diaries: The Making Of The Movie.

Watch a clip:

Enter the contest!

So, I haven’t always been perfect about buying fully recycled toilet paper. Mainly because of costs. With kids you go through a lot and recycled is almost always more expensive in my neck of the woods. However traditional, non-recycled toilet paper is terrible for the environmental so it is one of those products you should always buy green.

Secondly, when I do buy recycled toilet paper I don’t have major issues. It’s toilet paper not bedding. I don’t care that it’s not 100% cushy and mattress like.

That said I have a boyfriend who recently compared Marcal recycled toilet paper to a whole bunch of baddies; and I quote…

• “It’s worse than a Brillo pad.
• Poison Ivy leaves would be a step up.
• Maybe we could use it to sand the coffee table.
• It causes actual pain”

Note that I don’t agree. I don’t think Marcal was all that bad. Not as soft as traditional virgin toilet paper, but not sheer torture or even any sort of torture. My extremely picky son has also not complained. In fact, I’d probably buy it again BUT I have a live in boyfriend so nix that.

Also note though that my boyfriend is not the first to complain. I’ve heard plenty of people say they don’t think recycled toilet paper is soft enough; read all sorts of “recycled TP sucks” reviews, and so on. That said, I looked it up to see if there’s some issue that’s stopping recycled toilet paper from being manufactured in a softer way.

Grist, a green site I trust, notes that there are “Barriers to making it as soft as the virgin-tree-on-a-roll brands…The reason for this difference has to do with the fact that the texture of the starting fibers — whether virgin or recycled — influences the feel of the “end” product. Also, the fibers in paper shorten each time they’re recycled, making recycled paper less strong than the virgin variety. To compensate for this, some manufacturers use resins or mechanical means that help the recycled fibers stick together better. But making paper stronger also tends to make it stiffer.”

Other sites I found info on said much the same. So what to do? A challenge? Ok then. Here’s a round up of possible test subject choices:

1. Seventh Generation 100% Recycled Bathroom Tissue
2. Green Forest 100% Recycled Bath Tissue
   
3. Safeway Bright Green 100% Recycled Bath Tissue
4. Trader Joe’s 100% Recycled Toilet Paper
5. Whole Foods 365 100% Recycled Toilet Paper
6. Earth Friendly Products 100% Recycled Bathroom Tissue

These are the options I thought of. If you have an idea, let me know. I’ll maybe include it in a review and then later we’ll gather all the review subjects together for a round-up. And no I’m not installing a bidet at this time, so as green as it may be, please don’t suggest that. Oh and I don’t care if Walmart has some cream of the crop green toilet paper, I’m also not shopping there. Just an FYI.

Coming up soon some good reasons why you should used recycled toilet paper over virgin paper made toilet paper.

Have you liked any recycled bath tissues? Yes? No? Why or why not?

We’ve seen a lot of greenwashing efforts in our days here at Tree Hugging Family, (anyone remember the great eco Palmolive debate of 2008?) but the greenwashing campaigns that irk me the most are the ones aimed at green parents specifically.

The newer Huggies Pure & Natural diapers from maker Kimberly Clark, are a perfect example of greenwashing – maybe one of the better examples I’ve seen in a good long while. First of all these diapers appeared on the scene right around Earth Day this year – which is a great time to lure in unsuspecting parents because everyone has their mind on green topics; smart move on Kimberly Clark’s part.

BUT maybe they are green. Let’s take a look at what makes these diapers an eco-product according to Kimberly Clark

In their press release, Kimberly-Clark Corporation says that Huggies Pure & Natural diapers are “A super premium diaper that includes natural, organic materials and ingredients to provide gentle protection for new babies, as well as initial steps toward environmental improvements, without sacrificing performance.”

The so called eco-improvements include:

• Hypoallergenic, latex and fragrance free.
• Features a breathable outer cover that includes organic cotton.
• The liner includes natural Aloe & Vitamin E and materials from renewable sources.
• The product’s outer packaging is sourced from 20% post-consumer recycled materials.

Kimberly Clark isn’t being all that sneaky in the press though, which I will give them props for. After taking a survey and seeing that moms want diapers with organic and natural materials, Kimberly Clark decided to make these diapers. They note that they expect that “Huggies Pure & Natural diapers will help the brand build inroads with those moms who are most interested in products that include natural materials to provide the best care for their babies.”

Robert Thibault, president of Kimberly-Clark’s North American Infant, Baby & Child Care business, says, “Based on the preliminary response we’ve received thus far, we expect the unique attributes this diaper offers will be well-received by moms and our retail customers, and will help drive incremental dollar growth in the category.” So, at least they admit that the bottom line is driving dollar growth. It doesn’t make it right, but I like that they’re being honest.

What I don’t like is that they’re also being shifty. They don’t print press releases on the diapers so all new parents see are the lackadaisical eco-aspects. Let’s re-examine the eco-aspects they’re selling to consumers… Read more

The ReDirect Guide Green Sprouts Festival is coming to Portland, Oregon soon. Will you be going? If you live in Oregon or Washington, it should be a manageable event for your whole family.

What is the Green Sprouts Festival: This is a fun, festive, eco-friendly, and educational one-day event for the whole family that celebrates and promotes the nurturing of life through nature. Topics are all earth-friendly in nature and range from pregnancy to childhood allowing parents to learn about eco-friendly, community-involved, natural, and healthy options for raising their families.

Interactive activities & seminars: A wide variety of informative seminars and interactive activities are planned that will help you learn more about how you can raise your family in a healthy and sustainable environment. Topics include…

• Baby Shower Alternatives
• Natural Childbirth Options
• Lead Poisoning Prevention
• To Vaccinate or Not
• Baby Sling Alternatives
• Connecting Community & Co-Ops
• Child Care Alternatives
• Saving Green while Staying Green
• Introduction to Education forums
• Natural Pediatrics Health
• and more…

An insane amount of exhibitors are attending and there will be booths related to tons of cool gear, services, and educational experiences. Some highlights I pulled out from the HUGE list of exhibitors include: Read more

During all of this SIGG has BPA in the liner drama going down, maybe one of the most peeved individuals I’ve run into about it has been our own Peggy – aka, ex-Tree Hugging Family co-blogger extraordinaire. At Blisstree Green I posted about the SIGG issue as well and Peggy left an interesting comment about looking for glass water bottles. She posted a link to one type of glass water bottle, but didn’t love the reviews. It got me wondering if there was a better glass reusable water bottle out there, one Peggy might like, and after a little search I found one pretty cool option.

The Love Bottle is a reusable glass water bottle made with partially recycled glass and a ceramic swing top lid that creates a water-tight seal, although you can get a non-toxic silicone lid as well. Basics about the bottle include:

• The bottles have a cute shape and fun designs BUT they’re not too flashy, which I like.
• You can dress it up with stickers or write and draw on printed areas of the bottle.
• The bottle comes in 500 ml and 1000 ml sizes. It’s noted that the smaller size fits most car water holders.
• They offer a nice reusable non-toxic silicone funnel, which is a great idea for limiting water waste.
• Made in China (not great) but the company claims that they’re made responsibly, although I don’t think they’re a member of a Fair Trade group. They also state that their current goal is to move production to the U.S.
• You can design your own.

Obviously there are huge eco-benefits to glass water bottles. They won’t leech anything into your water, they won’t taint the taste, and they’re recyclable. Downsides – glass is heavy, breakable, sweats, and not a good natural insulator like stainless steel water bottles.

To keep your water cold, Love Bottle offers neoprene bottle carriers in pink or black for both sizes with drawstring closure and adjustable strap. BUT keep in mind that neoprene is not an eco-friendly product. I’d skip this water bottle carrier and go with a greener option like…

• NeoGreene Insulated Bottle Tote
• Hemp water bottle sling
• Earthlust Insulated Hemp Water Bottle Holder

Overall, this is one nice alternative if you’re looking for a glass water bottle. What do you think? Would you use a glass water bottle instead of plastic or stainless steel?

Visit Love Bottle to learn more.

In a previous review here at Tree Hugging Family, Peggy, former Tree Hugging Family writer advocated for the use of SIGG bottles over plastic water bottles and gave a nice (and favorable) review of SIGG’s bottle. I liked her review as did other readers. While there were some arguments in the comments, overall I think most people agree that SIGG is a responsible choice over plastic disposable water bottles.

Peggy’s SIGG Bottle Above – not so BPA free

That said there have been some developments over the past couple of days regarding SIGG and the safety of their bottles. Since we did post a review here, I felt like we should update you all on the situation. SIGG’s CEO Steve Wasik just announced that “SIGG bottles manufactured prior to August 2008 have the former water-based epoxy liner which contains trace amounts of BPA.” He goes on to say, “These bottles have been thoroughly tested and showed 0% leaching of BPA.”

But the leeching really isn’t the point is it? If you think you’re getting a BPA free product, you should, in fact get a BPA free product – no? Our old pal Peggy already posted her thoughts about this at her green blog Light Green Stairs and she points out some important things about why it matters that he’s even noting that there is BPA in the old liners.

Peggy writes:

Today, I feel very betrayed. In my Tree Hugging Family post, I defended SIGG’s decision to not disclose the ingredients of their liner since it was a proprietary secret. I also linked to a letter that was posted on mysigg.com, written by the President on March 12, 2007 in which he said:

I can assure you that SIGG bottles are absolutely not made with a plastic liner and are in fact lined with a proprietary non-toxic, water-based resin which has been refined over decades of study and is extremely safe & stable.

And he continued to state:

As you may know, the BPA issues surrounding Lexan plastic bottles (polycarbonate #7) involve the migration of chemicals from the plastic into the contents of the bottles. On the other hand, SIGG bottles have been thoroughly tested in Europe to ensure 0% leaching of any substance – no trace of BPA, BPB or any phthalates.

These are direct quotes from Steve Wasik, President SIGG USA.

AND BACK TO ME:

I’m a little miffed with SIGG and here’s why. One, although in that letter Peggy points to (the one back from 2007) Steve says that there’s no BPA in their liners, he writes in this new letter (from August 2009) that one BPA is just not all that bad going so far as to cite sources that note the safety of BPA and then goes on to say…

Despite the fact that these bottles (their old SIGG bottles) were manufactured well within strict international regulations and posed no health risk, my team and I initiated a project in June 2006 to develop a new liner which would be both BPA free and produced in a more environmentally friendly manner. We recognized early that there were questions surrounding BPA and we wanted to be sure that we had a bottle liner that you, our customers, could have absolute confidence in.

SO here’s the deal. He claims that the old SIGG bottles are BPA free, yet I’m somehow doubting that this came as a big old surprise to the company. They note that since 2006 they’ve been working on a new liner that would be BPA free. Why work on finding a BPA free solution if you already have one? You wouldn’t right? This is misleading consumers in a big way.

Peggy also notes:

“SIGG will have to go a very long way to win back the support of the green community. As part of making this right, I believe that SIGG should offer all consumers who purchased a SIGG prior to August 2008 (within reason) a free replacement bottle – IF they even want it. Contact SIGG.”

I agree. I think SIGG who did lie, owes consumers new bottles. People buy SIGG in order to have a healthy water bottle and the fact that BPA was present at all (leeching or not) is just pure lameness in my opinion.

AND if that’s not lame enough on its own Peggy also points out a fact I was not aware of, that SIGG challenged groups (like Organic Consumers Association) who accused their bottles of containing BPA, and even accepted an apology. It’s bad enough that consumers have to work so hard just to decipher the real green good from the greenwashed goods. Now we have to second guess what even trusted green brands say? Not cool. Read more about what’s so wrong with BPA.

Read Peggy’s entire post on this subject: SIGG Bottles Had BPA Before August 2008.

What do you think? Do you have an older SIGG, do you care that the company lied to you? AND do you think they owe consumers new bottles?