What Is Raffia?

Raffia is made from the dried palm leaves of the raffia plant. In its natural state, dried raffia is colorless, it’s only the addition of water-based inks that give raffia ribbon its matte or shimmering pearlescent colors. The finished string has a smooth, almost waxy texture, and it quickly breaks down into organic materials when exposed to the elements in a landfill.

Even more remarkable, raffia has amazing tensile strength for a plant-based fiber. Although, I doubt you’d ever want to go rock climbing with raffia as your lifeline rope!

What Is Raffia Used For?

Raffia is best used when you’re trying to present a natural, or rustic look for a gift without using ribbons as a decorative accent. Since it’s a biodegradable material, raffia is also a popular option for stores staking their credibility on an environmentally responsible image.

Photo credit Norsenut

Yet our most powerful statement as an eco-conscious Distributor, is the suppliers we choose to represent. A key consideration in our choosing any supplier is their track record in providing not only environmentally friendly packaging, but also how they go about greening their operations. In particular, I’d like to point out one of these suppliers with a record of green initiatives, the Seaman Paper Company, which produces much of our decorative, and recycled tissue paper.

Seaman didn’t develop its environmental initiative overnight, in fact, they developed the first water de-pollution plant on the Otter River in 1970, way before “green” became a buzzword. More recently they’ve intensified their green commitment with a slew of operational improvements, making them one of the most earth-friendly, tissue paper manufacturers in the country.

Ways Seaman Has Greened Their Operations

1) The pulping process for tissue paper is water intensive. A recent overhaul of Seaman’s Wastewater Treatment & Clarification facility has reduced suspended solids by 99%, making the treated water cleaner than when it enters the plant.

2) Waste residuals and paper fibers left over from the water treatment facility are converted into topsoil at a nearby 300-acre composting facility.

3) After the tissue paper is pressed it is dried by steam. For a heat source, conventional paper mills often burn oil, which contributes to the dangerous rise in green house gases. Seaman’s heat system is predominately fueled by wood chips made from recycled pallets. According to the EPA, these wood fueled furnaces are highly efficient, and produce less harmful emissions. As a result, Seaman has seen an 85% reduction in their greenhouse gas output.

When choosing Seaman, we liked that their tissue paper contained 65% post-industrial recycled content. However, the tipping point was their continuing operational improvements that demonstrated a genuine commitment to the environment.

Voice Your Thoughts

Do you give a priority to working with environmentally friendly suppliers? What criteria are important to you when choosing a green supplier?

“Although mainstream shoppers say they want green, their behavior shows they want great price, outstanding quality, superb service, and convenient access first. The retail owner must understand his or her market with their head and not just act on their heart,”

says David Ian Gray of Dig360 Consulting. Having succeeded in meeting these baseline needs, what must retailers do to make green practices another aspect of a profitable business?

Making It Easy To Be Green

There are two major influences that prevent people from acting on their green preferences.

First, it can be inconvenient, requiring research and time to find environmentally friendly products and services. People are increasingly busy and mobile, they may want to buy from a green retailer, but are unable to make an investment in finding them.

Smart greentailers will take advantage of this knowledge. Think local and get listed on eco directories such as www.organicconsumers.org, or www.greenamericatoday.org, the latter rigorously screens companies for environmental and social practices before adding them to their Green Pages.

Retailers shouldn’t forget about mobile consumers, get listed on iPhone apps like 3rd Whale Mobile, which provides locations for green companies and services in over 100 cities.

Second, people have a healthy dose of skepticism. It’s not enough to say you’re a environmentally friendly business, you have to provide proof of green claims.

For instance, think about how your products are labeled or displayed. When people have the time, they will read labels to find information, like an item’s country of origin or ingredients. While many retailers may not have the option to change product labeling, it’s possible to provide additional environmental back-story using an attention getting display.

Involve Customers In Green Programs

While large corporations may appear to be leaders in tackling green issues, their sheer size prevents them from getting consumers actively involved in their environmental programs. This creates an opportunity for small retailers, who often have more intimate connections with their customer base.

Customers who patronize small businesses want to know how these companies are involved in environmental activities. When your company recycles, reduces, reuses or provides sustainable packaging use this as an opportunity to tell the customer. Even better, tell them how their individual purchases are benefiting the environment. Tell customers how buying a locally sourced product saves gallons in gas and reduces CO2 emissions while putting dollars in fellow Americans’ pockets.

When a retailer acts as a role model it’s easier to encourage customers to want to live a greener lifestyle. One-way is to highlight options for reusing packaging, that’s the purpose of the Reuse Today section on our website. Be sure to point customers to these environmentally friendly ideas.

Additional Reading:

• What Green Can Mean For A Retailers Image

It is clear, that there is now a strong case for taking action, especially with the recent bad press regarding plastic bags. If you hadn’t heard, committed proponents have convinced officials in San Francisco, and some companies, (most notably Ikea), to ban plastic bags altogether.

But before taking action, be sure to base your decision on facts, which will help you determine the best course for your business.

Did You Know?

1) Plastic Bags Are Made From Domestic Gas, Not Foreign Oil.

According to the American Chemistry council, in the United States, plastic bags are made from natural gas, 80% of which is sourced from North America. Be sure to check for a country of origin, or ask if plastic bags are made in the USA before you purchase.

2) Plastic Bags Are Fully Recyclable

Over 1600 possibilities exist for a plastic bag to begin a second life. Reclaimed plastic is used in the construction of playground equipment, building and construction products, fencing, and of course, renewed plastic bags.

Despite the various reclamation uses, only 12% of plastic bags are recycled, however this is steadily on the rise according to the 2007 Municipal Waste Report conducted by the EPA. Increasing the recycling rate for plastic bags will also help solve the litter problem. Since people need to be educated and nudged to get them in the habit of recycling plastic bags, we’ve outlined later in this article a few effective options for retailers to encourage recycling.

3) Plastic Bags Save Businesses Money

If you compare the cost of 1000 8 ½ X 11 Paper Merchandise Bags, to the same size, and quantity High Density Plastic Merchandise Bags your savings will be 50%. That’s not including what you will save on shipping, as paper bags can weigh as much as 9 times more than a similar number of plastic bags.

Plastic bags, especially high density poly bags, are more resistant to tearing and stretching. As a result, HD bags are able to hold more merchandise than paper bags, meaning you will use less plastic bags than paper over time.

Do Your Part, Encourage Plastic Bag Recycling

Set up a plastic bag recycling bin prominently within, or outside, your shop. Encourage your customers to return plastic bags when they visit again. Get your store listed in the directory for bag and film drop off centers at www.plasticbagrecycling.org.

Create awareness for plastic bag recycling and get new customers into your shop with a fun contest. Organize a promotion, where the person who returns the most plastic bags wins a shopping spree in your store, or receives a one time use discount coupon.

Over 65% of people say they reuse plastic bags as trashcan liners. Encourage creative ideas for reusing bags that are not recycled. Download and print our reuse tips PDF, and handout copies to customers.

It’s Time To Bag This Article

After learning the facts, you may have a different perspective on how plastic bags affect our world. We hope you share this new found knowledge with your customers. Remember that effective recycling begins with proper education. Be sure to point your customers to this article, as well as the following web resources:

• www.savetheplasticbag.org
• www.plasticmythbuster.org
• www.thetruthaboutplasticbags.com