Easy Eco Swaps

Over the last couple of years, we’ve all been given the time to slow down and think about how we live our lives. According to the Metro, a third of us have become more eco friendly since we first went in to lockdown by adapting simple swaps such as only filling the kettle with the water needed and washing at lower temperatures.

These might seem like really small changes that couldn’t possibly have any wider impact, but as demonstrated in an article by Which?, if we all brought our washing down from 40 degrees to 30 degrees, the UK could reduce our CO2 footprint by the same amount as taking 400,000 cars off the road.

It can certainly be overwhelming when evaluating what you as an individual can do to become more eco-friendly. So, in the spirit of getting 2022 off to a good start, we want to share some of our favourite Easy Eco Swaps with you to help make this your most sustainable, healthy and happy year yet!

1. Grab a bar, not a bottle. It's not just hand soap that comes in bars - lots of other personal care products like shampoo and conditioner do as well. Using these instead of bottles saves plastic and will leave you just as clean. We recommend Eco Warrior Soap for all of your personal care needs! In the kitchen, our Dish-Washing Soap Bar is a perfect, plastic free alternative to traditional washing up liquid. To use, simply wet your brush or sponge and rub the dish soap until you get a lather - then wash your dishes as normal.
2. Swap your light bulbs for LED bulbs. Energy-saving LED bulbs can be up to 80% more efficient than traditional lighting, last six times longer and contain no toxic elements. If you switch all the bulbs in your home with LED ones, you could reduce your carbon dioxide emissions by up to 40kg a year!
3. Make the swap to plastic free condiments. Something we probably won’t even bat an eyelid at is restocking our ketchup, mayo or mustard. It doesn’t take much thought and is a staple in the majority of people’s fridges. But have you ever stopped to think about how much plastic we could save if all of our condiments came out of plastic? Dr Wills has every condiment you could ever imagine available to buy in jars or glass bottles. The bonus with them is that all of their condiments use 100% natural ingredients and are naturally sweetened unlike the market leaders making this both an Eco Swap AND a health swap!
4. Never forget those bags for life! This really is a simple one and one we all think we’ve got down, but we are still turning up at our supermarket shops empty handed. Make it a commitment to always bring your bags along to your food shop to stop yourself from buying yet another plastic bag at the checkout.
5. Reuse and refill! Plenty of containers used to package household items can continue being handy long after their first use. Jars and plastic containers are great for refilling with dried goods, and bonus points if they come from a refill shop! Similarly, your old cleaning trigger spray bottles can have a life far beyond one bottle full. Our EcoDrop range allows you to keep refilling and refilling, leaving your surfaces clean and the ocean sparkling! Now is a great time to make the switch and help us save 2 million bottles by the end of 2022.

Like the sound of these Eco Swaps? Let us know over on our social media channels @oceansaverdrops and be sure to tell us about any other easy alternatives that will help us all in the fight to save our planet!