I recently had the opportunity to vote with my dollar when buying new printer paper. I had already reused every piece of paper my son brought home from school and finally needed to restock 😆
Here’s how I made my purchase as eco-friendly as possible:
1) I chose a ream of paper wrapped in paper (not plastic)
2) I chose FSC-certified paper to support responsible management of the world’s forests
3) I chose paper that was made from 100% post-consumer recycled content
In this case, making the eco-friendly choice was more expensive 😐 Had I bought the non–FSC-certified paper, it would have cost only $5.99. If I’d purchased the paper that was FSC-certified but not recycled, it would have cost $6.79. If I’d bought the paper that contained only 30% recycled content, it would have cost $8.99. My FSC-certified, 100% recycled paper cost $9.79!
I wish the eco-friendly choice hadn’t been the most expensive option, but I was willing to pay a little more to help the planet. This ream of paper will likely last me a couple years, so the extra cost will be split over a long period. Plus, I save a lot of money by living a tiny trash lifestyle! 😃 And I’m happy to invest those savings in planet-friendly products 🙂💚 🌎
I know not everyone can afford to buy greener products all the time, but when we can, we should. If we want curbside recycling systems to work, we need to buy post-consumer recycled products to close the loop ♻️