6 Climate-friendly products tried and tested by our bullfrogpowered community 

You get it too? That jump of excitement when you hear about a new product that doesn’t litter our planet. It often can feel like a breakthrough, but it can be as simple as solid dish soap. Finally, one less single-use plastic bottle that’s part of our routine. 

But just like with everything new, we ask ourselves “will it be just as good as what I’m used to, or will I end up wasting my money?” 

If you’re looking for something tried and tested, we’ve created a list of some of our community’s beloved eco-friendly and maybe lesser-known products and services. 

What makes a product climate-friendly?  

There are several ways to unpack what sustainable or ‘conscious consumerism’ looks like. You may even ask whether there is such a thing. With mass consumerism and accelerated industrialization, we've seen historical emissions from developed countries which has added to the climate change problem. 

To help navigate your life as a consumer and make thoughtful decisions, we’ve created a non-exhaustive list of questions to ask yourself when purchasing a new product: 

• Is this a necessity or a luxury? 

• Can I buy this second hand? 

• Is there a locally produced option? 

• Does this product rely on fossil fuels? 

• Does this company credibly ensure safe and ethical labour practices? 

With these little nuggets of thought, we encourage you to reflect on what action you can take. Our bullfrogpowered community is here to support you by sharing their favourite climate-friendly products. Here are our top 6! 

The Green List 

1. Tru Earth laundry detergent sheets  

Photo:  Gurbeen and her colleagues holding up Tru Earth laundry sheets.
 

The number one choice from one of our residential customers — Gurbeen Bhasin, bullfrogpowered since 2008. 

Tru Earth’s laundry sheets are pre-measured laundry detergent sheets that take fossil fuel-based single-use plastic packaging out of your routine. They’re wrapped in lightweight, compact, recyclable cardboard—and for every 32 laundry sheets purchased, one plastic container is kept out of landfills and oceans. Gurbeen’s passion for sustainability has also influenced her taking action at work, where she’s introduced many eco-friendly products, including this one. Making the switch in laundry sheets and refilling all household cleaning supplies at a local refillery really makes a huge difference if we can all make simple commitments like this at home and in our workplaces. 

As luck would have it, Tru Earth joined our bullfrogpowered community this year! A Canadian company founded by two friends, Ryan and Brad, who felt compelled to take action against single-use plastics. YouTube videos of kids opening individually plastic-wrapped toys set their green gears in motion. As the saying goes, the rest is history. 

2. Collecting rainwater for your garden 

Photo: Rain barrels located at Don Ross’ home 

Don Ross, a passionate residential customer since 2013, brought attention to one of the planet’s most overlooked free resources. 

Don and his wife have installed rain barrels outside their home that capture and store rainwater to be used in their garden. Instead of consuming electricity from their well, they harness the natural water cycle. This action, like many others, can seem too small to make a difference. Don reminds us that there are 7 billion of us on this earth, each with a voice and an impact. 

3. Green Circle Salons Ontario 

 Photo: Bundle of aluminum foil sheets used for dying hair. 

Hey, it’s me, your author! I’ve been working at Bullfrog Power for a little over four years and have learned about quite a few innovative companies. I stumbled upon a hair salon that uses vegan products and included a small eco-fee that supports their commitment to sustainability. Turns out, this fee goes to a bullfrogpowered commercial customer, Green Circle Salons! 

I reached out to them to better understand how this fee gets used: 

“An average salon produces approximately 400 pounds of waste annually. Municipal waste management lacks specialized infrastructure to handle these specific waste streams effectively, rendering all this waste "useless" and destined for landfill. Our program is designed to enable salons to divert up to 95% of their generated waste from landfill.”

4.  LUSH Bring It Back program

Photo above: LUSH black pots being sanitized and recycled as part of their ’Bring It Back’ program. 

Carly has worked at Bullfrog for over 6.5 years. Like many in our team, she’s passionate about the environment and finding sustainable products that are good for the Earth and for your health.  

One of her favourite climate-friendly items is the Magic Crystals body scrub from LUSH. She values the limited list of natural ingredients that create a noticeably fresh and clean product. She also loves that it comes in their iconic black pots, which are part of a closed-loop recycling system, where they’re eventually melted down into pellets and remade into new containers. 

Their ‘Bring It Back program’ promotes returning your containers to one of their stores and earning a dollar off your next purchase. Better yet, bring five, and you get a free face mask!  

LUSH and Bullfrog Power have been working together for the past 15 years to advance a cleaner and more sustainable future. To learn more about our partnership, watch our new 20th anniversary video.
 

5. Warren’s Waterless Printing 

From our in-house graphic designer, Ann. Around the office, she’s known as the go-to person for nearly everything. Where to buy healthy local produce, how to make your own cheese, and how to make your own clothes. Here’s what she wanted to share with you: 

Conventional printing can be hard on the environment due to chemical pollution and the large amounts of water required to produce paper, manufacture ink, and clean equipment. And depending on the paper you choose, printing can also accelerate deforestation. Warren’s Waterless Printing addresses these issues at every stage of the printing process. They’re Canada’s only dedicated waterless printer, and they focus on using truly recycled paper, like paper certified by the Forest Stewardship Council®. And of course, they’re bullfrogpowered, which means they use clean, renewable energy to address the energy-related carbon footprint of their entire printing operation.
 

6. Goodfood meal kits

Photo above: Example of a Goodfood meal kit  

Janice Park, our Director of Marketing, loves the convenience of Goodfood’s fresh meal kits and their commitment to addressing their emissions makes all the difference! 

John and Neil started Goodfood, a Montreal-based online grocery subscription a little over 10 years ago. Chefs and local producers collaborated to create affordable restaurant-quality meals that are easily made at home. 

Sustainability has been a core value from the outset. Almost all of their packaging, including the cardboard box, insulation liner, bags, and bottles, is made of recycled materials and may be entirely recyclable depending on your location. At least 85% of the contents of your box is either sourced from Canadian farms and local businesses or packaged right here in Canada.   

They’ve further expanded their sustainability commitment by addressing their delivery-related emissions by purchasing Bullfrog Power carbon offsets! 

Conclusion 

Next time you're thinking about making a purchase, we hope our blog inspires you to commit to even one small change. There are a few myths about breaking habits, but what we know for certain is that setting a clear goal and carving out extra time for your commitment can go a long way. 

Thank you to everyone in the bullfropowered community that contributed to this blog post and who consciously do their best to make our planet healthier for all to enjoy. 

“Conscious consumerism - buying and being aware - ultimately determines your impact!” Gurbeen Bhasin, bullfrogpowered residential customer since 2008.