Recognizing 10 Bamboo Businesses in the U.S.A. and Canada 23 Apr 2014 bamboo baby wipes, bamboo charcoal, bamboo clothes, bamboo fabric, bamboo flooring, bamboo paper, bamboo shampoo, bamboo tea, bamboo toilet paper, Bambooee, Bamboosa, Boo Bamboo, BumBoosa, Cariloha, Ever Bamboo, Kimberly Clark, Teragren, Woo Bamboo If you reside in the North America you probably noticed that the ‘business of bamboo’ has come a long way in this neck of the woods in recent years. Not too long ago any bamboo company that you might come across was more than likely a bamboo flooring business. In part, the flooring industry paved the way for a bamboo consumerism. Now with modern techniques and technology, bamboo can be processed into a wide range of commodities. As of late, we are enjoying the existence of numerous other types of bamboo businesses in North America that offer a plethora of unique products and services utilizing and promoting bamboo as a replacement to traditional, less renewable materials like tree pulp, or pollutants like plastic. The following lists 10 bamboo businesses in North America that we would like to acknowledge for the work they’ve done to promote bamboo alternatives for the sake of the environment and the economy. Each company here has demonstrated their passion for and dedication in promoting bamboo. 1. EcoPlanet Bamboo is not in the business of bamboo products. Rather, as CEO Troy Wiseman says, they are “in the timber-replacement business.” Although EcoPlanet Bamboo is headquartered in Chicago, the company is creating sustainable bamboo plantations in Nicaragua, South Africa and beyond. And they are not just growing bamboo. The projects are inclusive to the local communities, improving education and providing jobs, and elevating the standard of living of the neighborhood. The raw bamboo product is aimed at engineered bamboo as a timber substitute, activated charcoal, bamboo charcoal and torrefied bamboo pellets for renewable energy markets. 2. Bamboo Leaf Tea Bamboo leaf tea and extract have been used medicinally in the Indian Ayurvedic tradition as well as in Chinese medicine for hundreds of year. Now offered by this company founded in 2010 in sunny Florida, Bamboo Leaf Tea grows its own bamboo and processes its tea without the use of chemicals. Bamboo Leaf Tea has a wonderful sweet, green flavor and offers many benefits. The tea is a source of silica and is a whole food format which can be absorbed better than a supplement. Bamboo Leaf Tea is committed to promoting the benefits of bamboo. 3. Bambooee A staggering 13 billion pounds of paper towels are used by Americans alone, every year. That’s around 130 million trees (on the basis that one paper pulp tree provides 100 pounds of paper). Paper towels are dispensed every day in restrooms and kitchens across North America and worldwide. Bambooee, headquartered in Los Angeles, California, offers an innovative solution with its reusable but disposable bamboo towel made from bamboo viscose. They can be washed up to 100 times before beginning to break down. They have the same look and feel as ordinary paper towels – even coming in a roll, mimicking how paper towels are normally consumed. The big difference though, is that one doesn’t just tear a sheet and throw it away. Instead, each sheet of bamboo towel is washable and reusable. A roll of 20 Bambooee sheets replaces 60 paper towel rolls, helping you reduce waste and save money. Made from organic bamboo, a sustainable source, the Bambooee Towels are also strong, absorbent and durable. 4. Kimberly-Clark, headquartered in Neenah, Wisconsin, the company behind Kleenex, Scott and Huggies, is one of the largest paper producers in the world. In 2012, Kimberly-Clark announced at the Rio+20 United National Conference on Sustainable Development that it would reduce its use of wood fiber sourced from natural forests by using other fiber types, including the possibility of alternative natural fibers.Kimberly-Clark’s UK line of Andrex toilet tissue launched a product made with 90 percent recycled fiber and 10 percent bamboo in spring 2012. The product is Forest Stewardship Council-certified for the bamboo and recycled fiber supply chain. Read more about KC’s advances into sustainability and alternative fibers here, environmentalleader/tag/kimberly-clark/ 5. Boo Bamboo, a company hailing from Toronto, Canada, makes use of bamboo extract in their hair and skin care products because it is so rich in mineral and organic proteins. Especially for their hair care products, Boo Bamboo promotes its bamboo extract as an aid to strengthen hair follicles and retain moisture to promote shine. Not only are they committed to utilizing bamboo, but Boo Bamboo is also dedicated to using other gentle and safe ingredients across their product line. 6. Teragren is a company of proud designers and developers of premium bamboo building products, headquartered on Bainbridge Island, Washington. Teragren specializes in bamboo flooring, panels, veneer and worktops, but are constantly looking into new product opportunities. From the founder CEO Ann and David Knight started the business in 1994, Teragren has been committed to developing and manufacturing beautiful bamboo products that: · Enhance home and business environments for years and years · Pay farmers and their families fair-market prices for raw materials in China · Pay fair wages to factory workers in China · Reduce dependence on dwindling timber resources · Rely on renewable-resource materials · Adhere to stringent, environmentally sensitive specifications · Promote green building · Provide a quality product that has no negative impact on human health 7. Bum Boosa Bamboo Products founded in 2009 on Cape Cod, Massachusetts, they were the first company in the U.S.A. to offer baby wipes made from bamboo viscose, an alternative to traditional tree pulp and plastic fiber wipes. Billions of disposable baby wipes are tossed into landfills every year. In fact in 2008, the Chicago Tribune reported that if someone were to load all the disposable wipes purchased by consumers in North America that year onto 18 wheel semi trucks, it would take 9,000 trucks, stretching for 68 miles. That statistic is six years old, and since then the wet wipes industry continues to drastically expand. Bum Boosa® also asserts that bamboo can help alleviate the burden that our forest lands bear for other tissue and paper products. Hence, they launched the first 100% tree-free bamboo bathroom tissue offered in the U.S. and Canada in 2010. 8. Cariloha Truly the first clothier to offer an entire wardrobe from head to toe made from organic bamboo viscose blends, this company was founded back in 2007 and is headquartered in Sandy, Utah. Today Cariloha is the only multi-store retailer in the world with an entire store experience completely merchandized with bamboo-based products that now also include sheets, towels, and blankets. Their stores are located throughout the Caribbean, west and east coasts of the U.S., Hawaii, and Alaska. They are the number one apparel brand throughout the cruise industry. You really have to step inside a Cariloha store to fully appreciate the multi-sensory bamboo experience that they have skillfully created for their customers. 9. Ever Bamboo, a company founded in 2007 in Calgary, Canada, brings bamboo charcoal to North America. The benefits of bamboo charcoal have been enjoyed for more than five centuries in Asia. Bamboo charcoal has been traditionally used as a substitute for wood charcoal or mineral coal. Some of its many uses include to purify and to deodorize. As a deodorizer, it can absorb toxic chemical substances for consumer (shoe, sport equipment, fridge, closet, drawer, etc), commercial and industrial applications. When submersed in water, bamboo charcoal softens the water, absorbs harmful minerals including chlorine, and releases its natural minerals (calcium, sodium, magnesium) into the water. It can be used as aquarium filter, water filter for bath water and non-drinking water, and for general household and industrial use. It can also serve as a dehumidifier since its high density and porous structure enables bamboo charcoal to absorb excessive moisture effectively. When humidity is low, the retained moisture would be released back into the atmosphere. 10. Woo Bamboo, founded in 2013, and with its headquarters in Cape Coral, Florida, offers bamboo toothbrushes. Over the course of a year, most people replace their toothbrush an average of three to four times. This amounts in over a billion brushes thrown away in the United States every year. That’s about 50 million pounds of toothbrushes sitting in landfills across the country every year with more piling on every day. Most traditional brushes are made from non-biodegradable materials, which mean that these brushes will keep sitting in the landfill for years to come. It’s very rare for these brushes to get recycled, and trying to dispose of them by burning or other methods just makes more pollution and waste. It’s poor hygiene to keep your toothbrush for more than a few months, so Woo Bamboo offers a solution with a bamboo toothbrush. The bamboo used in a WOOBAMBOO toothbrush is sustainably grown, organic, BPA-free, naturally anti-microbial, durable, biodegradable, and it’s stylish, too! WOOBAMBOO also totes the highest quality Dupont Tynex bristles, so your dentist would approve, as well. Although WBO recognizes these bamboo businesses, we are cannot confirm quoted statistics nor can we substantiate claims made on their websites. We praise them for considering bamboo as a viable and sustainable alternative! The intention of WBO is to help these and other businesses seek the facts to effectively educate the public and promote the sustainable utilization of bamboo resources around the globe. worldbamboo.net/environment/recognizing-10-bamboo-businesses-in-the-u-s-a-and-canada/
Posted on: Thu, 27 Nov 2014 01:46:15 +0000
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