GreenJean

Something to think about during the purchasing frenzy that precedes Christmas …

I saw this bag across a concourse crowded with students and bypassed all manner of offerings (stuffies, toques and accessories) to get to the stand selling it.

This bag is the perfect size for a full scale notebook, a small purse and a few sundries (hankies, granola bars, daytimers). It was also available in a drab shade of grey and black, but the day was dreary and the pop of colour cheered me irrationally.  The bag is made of jute (burlap or Hessian), woven from a plant fibre that grows quickly and is recyclable and biodegrable. Equipped with handles and a shoulder strap - I couldn’t have asked for more.

Then Katie explained the bag’s origins. It was crafted by a woman who no longer is working as a prostitute in Calcutta. Payment from making these bags keeps her off the streets. Suddenly, a shopping whim took on another dimension.

Freesetbags.com can also provide custom orders for corporate giveaways.

I spent ten minutes in the paper aisle of the grocery store tonight, trying to figure out if Seventh Generation is a better choice than Cascades toilet paper. Analysis paralysis started to set in, so I bought both and brought them home to do the math and compare.

Both brands are made with 100% recycled fibres, bleached without chlorine, hypo-allergenic, unscented and uncoloured. Seventh Generation pulls ahead by stating that their product is made with ‘a minimum of 80% post consumer materials.’ Cascades only claims that ‘a high percentage of post-consumer material’ went into their product.

A quick look at the package shows that Seventh Generation is ‘Made in the USA’ and their head office is listed in Burlington, Vermont. Their 1-800 number is printed on the package, so I’ll call tomorrow and see just how far my TP has travelled. Cascades is located across the river from Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Since I’m writing in Vancouver, being Canadian gets them extra points. Again the 1-800 number is clear and tomorrow some lucky telecentre operator can tell me where the TP originates.

So far they’re pretty evenly matched. Time to pull out the calculator and figure out the roll by roll value.

The size of a square (or sheets to use the packaging lingo):

Seventh Generation is a whopping 4.5 inches by 4 inches compared to Cascades 3.9 inches by 4 inches. (Sheryl Crow must use Seventh Generation if she thinks one square will do)

Sheets per roll:

I messed up!

The Seventh Generation package contains double-rolls, with 400 sheets per roll, but the Cascades rolls are singles with only 176 sheets per roll. Not a fair basis for comparison, but we’ll forge ahead (and possibly overstock this item in the interests of consumer research).

But the crumpled wrapper from our last purchase was still lingering beneath the bathroom sink. Enter ‘President’s Choice Green’, a private label brand of Loblaw’s,  found in the Real Canadian SuperStore and Extra foods chains. Made with 100% post-consumer recycled paper. Take that you other contenders! The sheet size is the same as the Cascades sheets (is that because it’s Canadian?) But the double roll contains 352 sheets (which is twice what a single Cascade roll holds - another Canadian standard?) Like the others, it is manufactured without chlorine.

But - there is nothing on the package assuring me of its hypo-allergenic qualities or its unscented nature. I did sniff and smelled only paper, but my nose is not terribly sensitive. As to colour, the package makes no claims, but it looks just like the other two. In fact…

The roll on the left is Cascades and the one on the right is  President’s Choice Green. The paper went through identical paper dimplers… could it be? Another Canadian standard? Or the same manufacturer? But Jean, (the inner skeptic speaks) the cardboard tubes are different. The Cascades is on a kraft brown tube and the other on a white processed tube. Clearly a significant difference! The question will be asked tomorrow (courtesy of a 1-888 number.)

All of this has been my way of avoiding doing the math. Which brand gives me the most green for the best price?

24 rolls of 176 sheets = 4224 sheets per package at a cost of $7.99 (cdn) = a number too ridiculously small to write here. (it was $0.002 if you rounded up the decimals)  

An easier comparison might be:

4224 sheets divided by 400 sheets (to make equivalent rolls) = 10.56 rolls  

$7.99 divided by 10.56 rolls = $0.76 per (doubled) roll  Cascades

4 (double) rolls at $6.29 (cdn) = $1.57 per roll Seventh Generation

Then I thought, why not phone my local store and make sure that there’s no strange price scale issues.

12 (double) rolls sell for $16.59 (cdn) = $1.38 per roll Seventh Generation

My instinctual grasp of simple math must be why I bought the four-pack of Seventh Generation instead of the twelve-pack.

Many more questions to answer tomorrow. Could it be that there is duty on imported bathroom tissue? Or that the exchange rate hasn’t caught up to the grocery shelf inventory? Or that the costs of shipping from Vermont are astronomical?

Truthfully, the thing that tipped my hand towards Cascades today was the FREE Reusable Shopping Bag enclosed in a second layer of shrinkwrap around the rolls. It fits the package with ease and saves that awkward under the arm juggle that virtuous plastic bag refusal entails.

Watch the video.

Choose your action.

At the very least, don’t buy your gas from Shell. 

Send the link to this video to two friends.

Consider writing a letter; to Shell, to your MLA (elected Member of the Legislature - provincial), to your MP (elected Member of Parliament - federal), to the local paper.

Many people taking small actions - can it change the world? Let’s try.