The Green Collective – SPRUCE

Bronze

Household Cleaning

$8.90

Clean Ingredients / Materials

Ethical Practices

SPRUCE non-toxic dishcloths are from Sweden and are printed with emerging designer’s art. They are made in a sustainable factory, where staff are fairly paid under some of the strictest employment laws in the world. The brand’s art designers are also paid for their work, which helps them in growing their brand. The Green Collective utilises local production and support when possible.

Sustainable Practices

SPRUCE dishcloths are sourced sustainably and The Green Collective is currently working towards their EKOS carbon neutral certification. The brand’s minimal packaging is recyclable and compostable, they ensure products are not individually wrapped and tissue paper and stickers from No Issue are also home compostable. All their information is printed on recycled paper using local printers, invoices are always emailed and the brand repurposes all offcuts, straps, pallets, boxes, card, paper, thread, and packaging. The brand estimates to have taken over 5,801,718 single use plastic bags out of circulation, stopped over 60,000 plastic sponges going to landfill and no more microplastic particles going down the plug hole when doing the dishes (Based on once a week use of Goodie Bags sold and on SPRUCE lasting a minimum of 6 months heavy use).

Social Impact

The Green Collective has supported charities such as Chasing Coral, My Climate, RSPCA, Sustainable Coastlines, Forest & Bird, Trees for Bees, Asylum Seeker Resource Centre and Currumbin Wildlife Hospital. The brand also donates to local school groups, community organisations and auctions to help provide prizes or fundraising opportunities. The Green Collective also matches waste products to businesses who can use them. For example, old kites have been passed to the Cancer Society to use for post surgical purposes. The brand's superior cloths are often custom printed by corporations, moving away from single-use plastic gifts. Through businesses gifting these to customers/clients they are introducing them to a new habit of cleaning without micro-particles and micro-fibres. Some businesses also on-sell these to assist them in raising money for charitable trusts.

Expert Reviews

Emily Ehers

Shannon Welch

How nice it was to have a washcloth/sponge that actually looked lovely! It brightened up my kitchen and made me smile every time I saw it. What I really loved about the product was that it acted like a microfiber cloth but (being made of cotton) didn’t lead to pesky fibers going down the drain and adding to the plastic pollution issue. It was incredibly versatile as well; given it’s high level of absorbancy I used it as a drip mat at our water station to soak up any child-induced flooding. A lovely addition to the kitchen.

Emily Fletcher

Corrine Sultana

I am really impressed all over by this company’s dedication to the environment and being a conduit for change. I love that they are the “waste tinder” and that they would put in extra work (that doesn’t necessarily have a financial reward) by offering solutions to other companies/organisations and offering them ideas for eco initiatives. As an artist myself, I was particularly happy that they paid their emerging designers – far too often artists (especially those yet to be established) are asked to make art in exchange for exposure. Exposure does not pay the bills, so I was really pleased to see that. I’m also really happy that they provided the statistics on how much plastic they have replaced and that I don’t need to worry about microfibre shedding from the cloths, which is a really big concern of mine.