The Green Village News for the ‘Ethical shopping’ Category
Wednesday, June 16th, 2010
Online flooring retailer flooringsupplies.co.uk have received an FSC accreditation which enables the company to use the well known FSC logo on a number of their engineered wood flooring products following chain-of-custody certification by SGS. SGS is a company providing verification and certification services to ensure particular requirements and standards regarding safety, performance and quality are met.
Chain-of-custody certification means that every step of the production process for the flooring materials bearing the FSC logo has to meet strict standards, with certified members involved at each stage. Every member of the teams involved in processing, distrubution, manufacturing and sourcing of the raw materials used to make the flooring has to undergo rigorous audits before the accreditation from the Forest Stewardship Council can be granted.
The products available from flooringsupplies.co.uk fall into two FSC classifications depending on the source of the wood content in the flooring – 100% certification and mixed sources. 100% FSC certification flooring products are manufactured from wood sourced entirely from forests with FSC certification. Mixed source certification wood products are made from responsibly source wood using virgin material that is FSC certified, from sources that are either reclaimed, or are certified or controlled by the FSC.
Flooringsupplies.co.uk believe that their industry needs to take responsibility for the environmental impact that it can have if manufacturing processes are not sustainable. The mindset and philosophy of the company focuses on increasing awareness among their customers and suppliers about environmental issues through promotion and education. Adrian Lee said,
“We are very proud to achieve this status and feel it’s important for all wood flooring manufacturers and suppliers to consider our environmental responsibilities, and to do our utmost to ensure we all commit to adhering to the values that FSC work so hard to protect.”
Choosing environmentally friendly flooring materials when redecorating or renovating your home is an important way of helping green companies and businesses, and also helps reduce the carbon footprint of your home. Increased demand for engineered wood flooring has already proved to have a positive effect on the environment as more trees are being planted than those being harvested for production of flooring. Therefore if you’re looking for flooring for your home, choosing the greener option such as FSC wood flooring is the best way to reduce the environmental impact of your redecorating project.
Tags: engineered wood floors, environmentally friendly flooring, flooring, flooringsupplies.co.uk, FSC accreditation
Posted in Companies and Organisations, Eco Home, Ethical shopping, Green Living, Green Planet | No Comments
Friday, December 11th, 2009
Even the most environmentally minded among us often have to frequently rely on four wheel car transportation to get us from A to B so finding a low carbon emitting car, whether it’s a family car or a commuter vehicle, is important. Stop-start technology, which is also known as micro-hybrid technology, is tipped to become a standard component in vehicles and would be responsible for considerable carbon emission reductions.
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Tags: car, carbon emissions, driving, fuel, micro-hybrid, oil, petrol, stop-start
Posted in Ethical shopping, Green Family, Green Living, Green Planet, Transport and Travel | No Comments
Wednesday, September 16th, 2009
Brixton will be taking a step in the direction of market towns Stroud, Totnes and Lewes with the launch of the Brixton Pound on Thursday 17th September. As the economy is still in the throes of recession, the concept of transition towns is being looked at as a model that could help ease the economic tensions by encouraging communities to become more self-supporting, as well as helping combat the problems of peak oil and climate change added to by transportation of goods from around the world.
It is hoped the launch of the new currency, which will not replace pounds sterling in Brixton but will be available as an alternative for customers, who will be offered their change in Brixton pound notes, will help keep money within the local economy. The currency will be available in £1, £5, £10 and £20 notes and a large number of businesses in the area have bought into the idea, agreeing to accept payment for goods or services in the local currency, either solely in Brixton pounds or in conjunction with sterling.
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Tags: brixton, brixton pound, buy local, climate change, community, economy, peak oil, sterling, transition towns
Posted in Ethical shopping, Events and Courses, Green Living, Green Planet, Sustainable Development | 1 Comment
Saturday, September 5th, 2009
The electric car market is due to get another boost following an agreement between Japanese car manufacturer Mitsubishi, and French owned Peugeot. The new electric car, which will be based on the i-MieV built by Mitsubishi, will be sold to the European market and will be available under both Peugeot and Citroen brands.
The agreement, signed yesterday (4th September) in Paris by the CEO of Mitsubishi, Osamu Masuko, and the CEO of PSA Peugeot Citroen, Philippe Varin, is a significant step in demonstrating their partnership concerning the development of electric vehicles. The new electric car will add to the current portfolio of lower emission vehicles offered by Peugeot/Citroen, which will be further added to when their new hybrid diesel models are released in 2011.
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Tags: citroen, electric cars, EVs, hybrid technology, mitsubishi, peugeot, renewable energy, sustainable transport
Posted in Companies and Organisations, Ethical shopping, Green Living, Green Planet, Science and Technology, Transport and Travel | No Comments
Wednesday, August 26th, 2009
The EU ban agreed to in December last year which will put an end to the sale of 100 watt and frosted incandescent light bulbs comes into place on 1st September 2009. The ban will help reduce carbon emissions, as energy efficient CFL (Compact Florescent Lamp) bulbs use less energy than the familiar incandescent bulbs, and also last up to 7 years, therefore significantly reducing the number of bulbs people need to buy.
Energy efficient light bulbs have become much cheaper to buy over the past couple of years, and advances in technology have meant they are now available in many different sizes and shapes, with both bayonet and screw fittings, and are even available to work with dimmer switches. There is some criticism however regarding the newer types of CFLs that they do cost more, however the Energy Saving Trust estimates that each energy efficient light bulb used can save between £3 and £6 on your electricity bill each year.
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Tags: CFL, electricity bills, energy bills, energy consumption, energy efficiency, energy efficient lightbulb, energy saving, incandescent light bulb, light bulb ban, lightbulb
Posted in Eco Home, Energy and Resources, Environmental Politics, Ethical shopping, Green Living, Green Planet, Science and Technology | 8 Comments
Monday, August 17th, 2009
The Chicken Out! team are going out and about on a tour of a number of UK cities over the 39 days spanning between 10th August and 17th September. The tour will last the same amount of days as a broiler house chicken lives, from the day of hatching to the day they are shipped to the supermarket shelves.
The tour coincides with a daily blog which tells the story of a factory farmed chick’s lifetime from the day it hatches until the end of its short life 39 days later. Chickens that are raised for meat in broiler houses live an unnatural and short life. Intensive farming of chickens means that large numbers of birds are crammed into vast broiler houses with no natural light, no stimulation to promote natural behaviour such as scratching and perching, and large numbers of the birds die before they even reach the age required to be sent off for food.
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Tags: broiler house, chicken out, factory farming, free range, free range chicken, free range eggs, hugh fearnley whittingstall, intensive farming
Posted in Ethical shopping, Food and Farming, Green Family, Green Living, Green Planet | No Comments
Tuesday, August 4th, 2009
Master Brewers, Stella Artois have teamed up with the Tree Council to fund traditional hedgelaying throughout the UK. Over the next two years, Stella Artois will market promotional multi-packs of lager and for each pack, will donate funds to grow and plant hedge saplings.
It is hoped that the scheme will replenish hedgerows up and down the country with the company pledging to provide up to 365,000 hedgerow saplings and more than 8,500 hedgerow trees. Both the Tree Council and the National Hedgelaying Society will be responsible for organising and laying the hedges and environmentalist and television star Ben Fogle will be the face of the campaign.
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Tags: alcohol, carbon footprint, hedgelaying, hedges, national hedgelaying society, stella artois, tree council, WRAP
Posted in Companies and Organisations, Crafts and Skills, Ethical shopping, Green Living, Green Planet, Recycling and Waste | No Comments
Monday, August 3rd, 2009
Car manufacturers Nissan have announced their new 100% electric car, the Leaf, will be rolled out in car showrooms by the end of next year. The zero carbon vehicle would not only have a greater range than other electric cars on the market but would also have a top speed of 90 miles per hour and will be available in Japan, the US, Europe and the UK.
The new electric car will sit in the £10-15k price bracket and will be the first mass-produced electric car on the market. In contrast to other electric cars, however, it will be looking to fill a gap in the family car market appealing to those wanting to reduce their family’s carbon footprint, as a 5 door hatchback with no carbon emissions. The green machine also boasts a 100 mile range between charges compared to the top figure of 70 miles for the city favourite, G-Wiz.
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Tags: electric car, electric vehicle, ev, leaf, nissan, sunderland, zero emissions
Posted in Companies and Organisations, Ethical shopping, Green Family, Green Living, Green Planet, Science and Technology, Transport and Travel | 2 Comments
Sunday, July 19th, 2009
Back in February Gordon Brown threatened supermarkets that unless they took action to reduce the amount of carrier bags given away, currently 1 billion bags every year of which many are shipped off to landfill after a single use, the government would pass legislation forcing supermarkets to act.
The threat paid off, as carrier bag usage has been reduced by 48% across the UK in May 2009 compared to the amount of bags used in May 2006, meaning a reduction of 420 million fewer carrier bags in total. However with a target of 50% set by British Retail Consortium members, the Welsh Assembly, Scottish Parliament, Northern Ireland Department of the Environment and Defra in 2008, this is still 2% short of their original aim.
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Tags: bag for life, brc, carrier bags, plastic bags, pollution, supermarkets
Posted in Companies and Organisations, Environmental Impact, Ethical shopping, Green Family, Green Living, Green Planet, Recycling and Waste | No Comments
Tuesday, July 14th, 2009
Supermarket chain Asda have announced the launch of a new range of low carbon beef as part of their latest efforts to reduce their store’s environmental impact and increase their green credentials. The addition of the new product range comes as part of a programme the company has introduced in order to calculate the carbon footprint of the meat on its shelves.
The range of beef is sourced from bull calves born into dairy herds that would usually either be exported or shot at birth due to their low value to dairy farmers. Asda source the meat from British dairy farmers who raise the calves to 9-11 months old. Compared to standard beef that is usually slaughtered at 24 months old, Asda claim their low carbon beef has a carbon footprint that is up to a third less than other beef.
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Tags: asda, beef, calf, dairy cows, imported meat, supermarket
Posted in Companies and Organisations, Ethical shopping, Food and Farming, Green Family, Green Living, Green Planet | 2 Comments
