Staples is making it EcoEasy to stay green at home or the office
The other day I was ordering office products from Staples and noticed a graphic that said, “EcoEasy” on certain product pages. Then I received our Staples Rewards mailer and noticed a coupon for notebooks that were made with a sugarcane byproduct. It seems as thought Staples is really trying to help customers maintain their green lifestyle when it comes to office products.
Green for back to school
Browsing Staples online I found everything from 4GB bamboo flash drives ($24.99) with 100% renewable and biodegradable bamboo casing, to a recycled retractable ballpoint pen ($14.99 a dozen) made with 75% post consumer recycled material. Starting your back-to-school shopping? Staples has greener notebooks, sticky notes, writing instruments and more.
What does EcoEasy mean?
Staples has done some of the research for you, making it easier to identify which products fir your green lifestyle. You can search for eco-friendly items and limit your search to those products deemed eco-friendly. According to the Staples website,
“Staples EcoEasy icon is used to identify a category of eco-conscious products that we believe demonstrate reduced environmental impacts compared to other products in their category. Use of the EcoEasy icon is based on an evaluation of the product's environmental features. Products that qualify must meet one or more of the following criteria:
• Recycled content exceeds industry standard for the class of product
• Remanufactured alternative
• Has credible third-party certifications or meets such standards (ENERGY STAR®, Forest Stewardship Council, EcoLogo, GreenGuard and Green Seal)
• Includes multiple environmental design elements that we believe lead to reduced environmental impacts compared to similar products in the category.”
Staples own eco-friendly brand Staples has an eco-friendly brand of products called Sustainable Earth by StaplesTM. The notebooks are made of 80% sugarcane waste. Sugarcane is great because of how quickly it is renewed. The re-manufactured toner cartridges will help cut back on an estimated three million cubic feet of landfill space that may take as long at 1,000 years to decompose. And the cleaning supplies are affordable and meet the “Green SealTM environmental standard for household cleaners based on its reduced toxicity, biodegradability, packaging, and other characteristics.”
For more information on Staples eco-easy and Sustainable Earth by Staples brand visit Staples.com.
Have you come across a major retailer offering more eco-friendly choices? Let me know in the comments so I can explore and report back to everyone here!
Janine Nickel (@Twincident on Twitter) documents her neuroses, the drama of raising twin girls and offers product reviews and giveaways at TwoferMom.com.