Yes! Everything we clean with eventually goes down the drain and into waterways, oceans and soil. A biodegradable ingredient can be broken down by microorganisms into simple, harmless substances, so it’s less likely to linger and harm aquatic life. Plant-derived doesn’t automatically mean biodegradable, so we look at both where an ingredient comes from and what happens to it afterwards to ensure our cleaning products are biodegradable. Petroleum based can also be biodegradable but they break down to CO2 releasing fossil carbon.

Yes, they are. Cleaning power comes from the structure of the molecule and how well the formula is put together, not from whether the starting material was a plant or oil.
Plant-derived cleaning agents such as glucosides work well for everyday cleaning, and a well-designed formula doesn’t need petrochemical starting materials to do the job.

It comes down to where an ingredient’s starting material comes from. Plant-based ingredients are made from plant sources such as coconut oil or plant sugars, while non-plant-based ingredients start with petrochemicals, which come from crude oil. Plant-derived ingredients begin with a renewable source rather than a fossil one. On our labels, an asterisk marks the ingredients that are plant-derived.

At the very low levels we use, they’re safe for most people, and they keep
water-based products free of bacteria and mould. BIT, MI and MCI can cause
allergic reactions in some people, particularly with repeated skin contact, so
we use the lowest effective level and combine them so we need less of each. If
you’d rather avoid them, our Sensitive Dishwashing Liquid is made without them.

SLES goes through an extra manufacturing step (ethoxylation) that makes it milder on skin, and soluble so it’s the one we use in everyday products like dishwashing liquid. We use SLS in just one product, our stain remover, in small amounts for targeted action. The SLES we use is plant-derived and readily biodegradable (AS4351). Our Sensitive Dishwashing Liquid contains no SLES. Sodium Coco Sulfate is a similar detergent made directly from coconut oil. It is milder than straight SLS but is mixture that contains some SLS.

Only rarely. If the standards aren’t followed. Whether an ingredient is a concern depends on what it is, how much is used, how it is used and the standards it meets. Our fragrances are blends of natural and synthetic oils used at very low levels, and all comply with IFRA standards. Our dyes are food or cosmetic grade and used in tiny amounts.

Some people do react to fragrances, so our Sensitive Dishwashing Liquid is made without fragrances or dyes.

We have strict standards before considering a product greywater safe.

All of our products have negligible phosphates, use biodegradable surfactants and nearly all, except our Earth Choice & Earth Choice Dishwashing Powder contain low enough sodium levels, making them grey water safe. These products also do not contain any ingredients that are toxic to plants. 

Our Dishwashing Tablets & Powder have a moderately high level salts, which with the lower level of water used in dishwashers and food residue make it unsuitable for grey water.  Kitchen waste water is often classified as “black water” due to the food residue and is therefore not suitable for use as Grey Water.

Please use our dish tablets and dish powders in standard sewer or septic system where the water will be treated and disposed of properly.

We are committed to minimising the amount of virgin plastic used in packaging as much as possible. The amount of recycled plastic used in our packaging  can vary from 30% to 100% depending on the type of product. Whilst we are able to use 100% recycled plastic in our clear PET bottles, some of our HDPE bottles can only handle 30% recycled plastic before the structural integrity of the bottle is compromised.

Yes, all of our bottles are 100% recyclable. Please follow the recycling instructions on the back of pack.