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Seventh Generation is a company I support. Really, I support green cleaners and products, in general, but Seventh Generation happens to be what the store down the street from my house sells and therefore it is what I buy. The green and clean company was recently discussed in the New York Times in great depth. The president of the company, Jeffrey Hollander, answered some tough questions and has given consumers some good reasons to support green products. If you haven't been sold yet on store-bought green cleaners and other household products, maybe Seventh Generation can finally sell you on this concept.
The article, which I'd encourage you to read, details Seventh Generatiion's green initiatives in great detail, but below are the points that stood out to me the most.
1. When Hollander was asked why his green cleaner is different than the other green cleaners out there, his response was short and yet poignant. Seventh Generation uses only green products. They don't assume that ingredients like formaldehyde are safe just because they haven't been determined carcinogens yet.
2. When asked about how the packaging of Seventh Generation products are becoming greener, Hollander had some satisfactory responses. Hollander recognized that creating trash via eco-friendly products is a bit ironic, but he and his company are working toward changing that. Hollander says that sometime within this year, 75% of their products will be made from recycled plastic. He admits that this isn't as good as making the bottles reusable or refillable, but hey, it's a start.
3. Hollander straight up tells the interviewer to make their own window cleaner rather than buy his for $4. He goes as far as to tell the interviewer precisely how to do this. 2 cups of water and 1/4 cup of vinegar will do the trick for windows, he says, but we're way ahead of him here on Planet Green when discussing the benefits of vinegar. But I won't hold that against him. His humility is inspiring.
Hollander's final words in the interview were what really struck a green chord with me. When asked about what kind of green advice he has to offer, his answer was as follows:
While it's better to buy recycled over nonrecycled, it's better to buy nothing to begin with. The first thing you should do is don't buy things you don't need. Even our products.
I respect businesses when their allegiance to the environment comes before their allegiance to their bank accounts and Hollander really left a good impression with me with this interview.
Upshot: if you're going to buy cleaning products, consider Seventh Generation.
