Last year parents everywhere became concerned about BPA in their kid’s feeding gear… bowls, cups, plates, spoons. Parents are still concerned about it. My posts with compilations of BPA free cups and BPA free plates, bowls, and utensils are still get huge amounts of daily traffic. One option that was slow to catch on back then was that of wooden feeding items. Why is a mystery to me because even if it is BPA free plastic… this feeding set:

… is UGLY. This would be an eyesore at my table and in my cupboards.

But this set:

… is lovely! This Camden Rose bowl and spoon is a great  non-plastic option. As is their wood plate. I am excited to see more options for people who like wooden feeding gear!

This is a somewhat regular feature I added awhile back to organize reader questions. I have a build up in my email inbox so I am doing some virtual housekeeping now.

Reader Jen: My plastic laundry baskets are falling apart and I really need to replace them. Any ideas for a great eco-friendly solution? I haven’t thought of anything I can re-purpose for hauling my clean laundry upstairs and I’m not sure where to look (preferably locally) for something made with sustainable materials and eventually biodegradable. Any ideas for me?

NatureMom: Well, Jen you have a few options in eco friendly laundry baskets. For one thing the metal frame baskets with cloth liners  that you find in big box stores are not to shabby. If you want local you can also canvas yard sales. Even if you don’t find laundry baskets you may find something else that can be re-purposed into a laundry collection unit. ;) Wooden egg crates or wood barrels come to mind.

You could go with a wicker or bamboo basket too. They are natural and they will biodegrade when you are ready to toss them. They have a few on Amazon here and here. Gaiam also offers a bamboo laundry organizer with a basket and bar for hanging clothes.

I also really like these hampers made from recycled feed sacks. They are made by Cambodian villagers with old rice and feed sacks. They are unique, colorful, recycled, and they look they would be really easy to carry down into the basement to do laundry. ;) If you are able to find old feed sacks locally you could also make something like these on your own.

Reader Teresa: Hi Tiffany! Have you looked into these? I have had a Brita in the past and loved having cold, filtered water right out of the fridge. I have heard though, that there is some BPA in the filters. Do you know of any safe alternatives?

NatureMom: Great question! Buying bottled water presents a serious plastics problem for our planet but tap water may be down right nasty to drink. So the more eco friendly option would be to filter your tap water at home and assuming that a whole house filtration system is not in the budget that means having some sort of portable system.

As far as I know Brita’s filter, filter canister, and pitcher are made of 100% polypropylene plastic. Polycarbonate plastics are the big BPA culprits. The Soft Landing has a good article on this very topic. So its appears that Brita is a good brand for you. They also recycle their filters.

The water filter that I have (and that you see in this video) is from Zero Water. It has a pretty darn impressive 5-Stage filtration and a push button dispenser for in-fridge use. I hope to get a review up for it very soon. It has no BPA plastics in it and they have a filter recycling program. They also offer an awesome filter bottle that fits on top of a water cooler. It is quite awesome since conventional water cooler bottles do have BPA I believe.

Reader Wendy: I was thinking that at least buying locally is better than store bought and cheaper, so I was trying to do that.  However, it was not organic. I thought it was still a good compromise. But I have read things lately that are making me wonder. When I thought I was doing good… did I do bad?

NatureMom: Ah yes, the question we probably ALL ask ourselves. If you have a choice between organic but not local OR local and not organic which is best? Well, this one doesn’t have an easy answer. There are people who argue for both sides and insist their way is best. Eating local as much as you can without regard to organic may be better for the planet but eating only organic may be better for the body. Of course if you toss air and soul pollution into the mix with organics the answer becomes muddled. And if you think about how pesticide use destroys our soil then local become muddled.

Here is my take on it…just do your best. If you are shopping at farmer’s markets and “you pick” farms you are likely getting pretty close to organic because small farmers don’t have the budget for mass quantities of chemicals. Talk to them and find out how they grow the food. You may be surprised to find that many are organic… they just don’t have the expensive certification. Balance that with some non local foods that are certified organic. I buy local and organic whenever I can and when I can’t I just do the best I can. But continue to ask your local farmers and grocers for local, organic foods and you may just eventually see the change you want.

Reader Sarah: My hang-up is that there always seems to be so many more things I could do that it feels overwhelming. And then I feel like the things I am doing, aren’t enough. Also, and especially now in this economic crisis, buying organic and other green products is more expensive (sometimes twice the cost of the regular product), that it feels irresponsible financially. I know that may sound horrible. Anyway, I’m hoping you can pass along some insight as to how you make things work for you and your family. And stay sane. ;-)

NatureMom: I understand your frustration Sarah but in order to stay sane I recommend not trying to do too much at once. I have a wish list that I keep of green changes, green products, green renovation ideas, etc that I use to keep track of my goals. I do this because I cannot afford to go whole hog and do it all at once. So I do it little by little.

For instance in my kitchen you will find bamboo cutting boards, wooden cooking utensils, green (Teflon free) non-stick cookware, recycled colanders, stainless steel and ceramic mixing bowls, glass refrigerator dishes, etc. I did not buy all these things at once. I just made and inventory of what I need to change… paper towels replaced by cloth rags, plastic cooking utensils replaced by wood or metal… and I worked on those things one at a time. I still do this.

And as much as you can try to utilize the green ideas that actually SAVE you money and you will have a lot more wiggle room in the budget to work with.

All this week I have been using a Preserve colander in the kitchen. There is just no better kitchen gadget than a colander for washing all the fresh fruits and veggies we eat. Our colanders also do double duty as produce bowls on the counter when they are not in use. I am loving my Preserve colander too.

Preserve is no stranger company to me. I am already a big fan of their toothbrushes. What I love, love, love about Preserve… other than their fantastically designed products… is the fact they recycle plastic already in the waste stream to make their products. They use 100% recycled #5 plastic to make their products including open ended containers like yogurt cups. This is a big boon in my eyes because many recycling plants will not accept open mouthed plastic containers like cottage cheese or yogurt containers. They just end up in the landfill. Preserve is doing something about that.

My Preserve colander is 100% recycled plastic, it is recyclable,  it is made in the USA, it is BPA free, it is dishwasher safe, and it is beautifully designed and attractive. All their products have vibrant colors and a kind of modern yet retro look. The colanders come in Milk White, Berry Blue, Apple Green, and Ripe Tomato. I have the Apple Green.

I also have a stainless steel colander with an enamel finish. But I find myself going straight for the Preserve colander more often than not because it is so light weight and easy to clean. And because it is using recycled plastic headed for the landfills I feel no guilt about it being plastic. This is in fact the best way to buy plastic! And of course plastic is also more affordable. This plastic is sturdy too. It will last a very long time so that I can get many years of use out of it and then of course it can recycled again. :)

Target is now carrying the Preserve line if you want to check it out. The prices are as follows:

Large colander: $11.99
Mixing bowl set of 3: $21.99

Large plastic cutting board: $12.99
Small plastic cutting board: $8.99

I have written extensively about BPA or Bisphenol A on this blog. It is a hormone mimicking chemical that can be found in some plastic types. It is most commonly found in baby bottles, water bottles, kids feeding items (cups, plates, bowls, utensils) toys, etc.

Today I saw an investigative journalism report from Fast Company that takes the BPA issue and really tells it like it. They accuse plastics manufacturers and chemical companies that make BPA of using the same tactics used by Big Tobacco to fund fraudulent studies and sow seeds of doubt about their dangerous product.

They did their own in depth investigation and found that the BPA debate is nothing but “a battle to protect a multibillion-dollar market from regulation”. This quote was especially telling:

Just five companies make BPA in the United States: Bayer, Dow, Hexion Specialty Chemicals, SABIC Innovative Plastics (formerly GE Plastics), and Sunoco. Together, they bring in more than $6 billion a year from the compound.

Of the more than 100 independently funded experiments on BPA, about 90% have found evidence of adverse health effects at levels similar to human exposure. On the other hand, every single industry-funded study ever conducted — 14 in all — has found no such effects.

It is a long article but worth the read with shocking info about scientists requesting that their names be removed from reports that claimed BPA was safe and final report statements about BPA being safe being made BEFORE studies even started!

The government is unlikely to start controlling the use of BPA. The United States has a long tradition of keeping harmful substances — lead, DDT, tobacco, PCBs — on the market for decades after scientists find adverse effects.

This is why consumers need to educate themselves about BPA and let their money do the talking. We can vote against BPA ourselves by not buying products that have it and supporting companies that don’t use it. Here are some of my BPA articles with product links:

BPA Free Sippy Cups – Foogo, Klean Kanteen, Sigg, Avent Naturally, and Born Free

BPA Free Sippy Cups Part Two- Boon Fluid, The Safe Sippy, Nuby, ThinkBaby, and Funtainer

BPA Free Water Bottles

Glass Baby Bottles- Evenflo, Medela, Playtex, Born Free

BPA Free Baby Bottles Part Two- Glass bottles with protective sleeves (Siliskin and Wee-Go), and polycarbonate plastic baby bottles, Green to Grow, Nuby, Dr. Brown, Evenflo, Adiri

BPA Free Teethers and Pacifiers- Sophie, Natursutten, Raz-Berry, Playtex, Gerber, Chan Pie Gnon, Nuby, Sassy, and more.

BPA Free Plates, Cips, Bowls, and Utensils-  Boon, Camden Rose, Mini-Me, Emily Green, Dombo, Trebimbi, Sassy and more.

BPA Free Lunchboxes, Nursing Gear, and Toothbrushes

BPA Free Popsicle Molds

BPA Free Blender

I have always had a favorite water bottle and his name is Mr. Klean Kanteen. But step aside Klean because you may have been replaced. Okay maybe not replaced, but you will now have to share your coveted position in my cupboard. Make room for the sleek and ingenious Intak by Thermos.

I wondered how I would like the Intak but I can now say I am a huge fan and while the Intak is a reusable (green) water bottle it does have a big strike against it…it is plastic. BPA free, safe plastic but plastic none the less. But am an ardent admirer now and I will tell you why.

The Intak is a great sports bottle…emphasis on sports, activity, hiking backpacking, camping, etc.  In that respect the Intak wipes the floor with heavier stainless steel bottles. I personally do not like to take Klean Kanteens on hikes or when camping because it is heavy and when backpacking or day hiking weight is extremely important. Backpackers know the full weight of their packs down to the ounce…just look at backpacking gear in a sporting goods store and look to see how they put the weight on everything. Sigg is not as heavy but it also has another problem that it shares with KK. They are cold. If I put a cold liquid in either of these bottles, the temp transfers to the outside and it can be very uncomfortable to hold onto such a cold bottle, especially in winter. An insulated bottle somewhat fixes this but it adds weight. This problem is not as pronounced with plastic.

Also, when backpacking or camping I sleep with my water bottle in cold weather to keep it from freezing. I know I don’t want to sleep next to a cold metal bottle. ;)

Beyond that, the Intak has an ingenious design…the best I have seen. The bottle portion is long and sleek with ridges along one side to help with grip. It has an ounce measuring line on the other side so you can keep track of how much you are drinking. This leads to another reason why plastic as opposed to stainless steel makes a better sports bottle…you can see the water levels. Knowing how much water you have is important when backpacking or camping.

The Intak has a push button on the cap and with one push the top pops open so you can grab the bottle, pop the top, and drink all with one hand! To prevent you from accidentally opening it you can put a little metal flap over the button to keep it from engaging….perfect.

AND it also has a sturdy plastic loop on the back of it so you can attach it to a pack or belt if you want to. This is a great feature. It even rated a mention by The New York Times as a great bottle for sports enthusiasts.

It is made of plastic that is BPA free so you don’t have to worry about toxic leaching into your water. You can also put in on the top rack of the dishwasher.

It comes in blue and purple, green, and pink. If you are a die hard stainless steel fan they even have a SS version!! I have the blue one as you can see above and below. If you are in the market for a reusable bottle this is a good one! The $11.00 price tab is great too.

Update: 7/31/2011 – Still using this bottle and it is the one that I reach for quite often! When we went hiking in the Hocking hills region of Ohio just today I grabbed this lightweight bottle without hesitation and it was cinch to carry all day long.