Crocodile Creek Eco-Kids Drinking Bottles
Crocodile Creek has a beautifully illustrated line of environmentally friendly stainless steel drinking bottles great for kids of all ages. It’s always difficult to get our kids to drink plenty of liquids. These bottles make it fun for any kids to want to have a reusable drinking bottle and will make sure they are always hydrated. On top of that, they are completely safe for them, unlike the many plastic bottles that most of our kids are drinking from.
These great little water bottles hold 10 ounces of any cold liquids ranging from water to milk. They are made from high grade food grade stainless steel, making them durable drinking bottles in even the toughest of situations. Kids can take them to school, sports or camps. All plastic components of the bottles are made from recycled materials and are BPA-free. Unlike plastic bottles, they are easy to clean and will not stain or have a bad taste after washing. You can hand wash them or stick them in the dishwasher (only the actual bottle though). All bottles are also tested thoroughly to ensure that the products are completely safe for our little ones. On top of all thee great things, they retail at just under $10. That’s a great price for drinking bottle that will last for a long time.
The best thing about these bottles for kids is that they have such color and fun designs for both boys and girls. Just look at some of the great designs in the above picture and it’s no surprise that kids love these drinking bottles. They have a wide range of designs from firetrucks, dinosaurs and vehicles to butterflies, sunflowers and horses.
I was fortunate enough to receive some of these bottles and give them to a few kids of friends and family. It came to no surprise that all the kids absolutely loved these bottles. The best story from this is that one little girl carried her horse drinking bottle all over the place with her. She would not let it go and even slept with it 
The parents all were happy that they kids were excited to be drinking more liquids, especially water and milk. They also praised how strong they were and that it was nice they were dishwasher safe.
I applaud Crocodile Creek for making such a great product that kids love and will enjoy to use. It would be great to one day see every kid in school have stainless steel drinking bottle in their book bags. Drinking bottles are not the only thing that Crocodile Creek makes. They also have similar designs that are on their bottles on other great products for kids including lunch boxes, back packs, puzzles and bibs. Whether your a parent or a retailer looking to stock their products, check out all the great products they sell.
CarPooling: Quick Savings Tip
Carpooling to work everyday is an easy way that you can reduce your daily gas consumption. It is also great way to not only save money on gas, but also reduce the amount of wear on your vehicle.
Approximately 10% of all works nationwide carpool to their work every day. That’s a much higher number than I expected, but still lower than it should be. It doesn’t make sense that several people going to the same place at around the same time are all traveling in different vehicles.
I know what you are thinking, you don’t know anybody that works with you to carpool with. It may be weird to drive with people you don’t know, but there are other people out there that are willing to carpool to work so they can save a little cash as well. Two websites provide a way to connect with people just like you who are looking for a carpool to join:
- Carpool Connection: Put in your daily route to work and you can find others who drive that same route. If nobody is on that route, you can leave a message to find other to carpool with.
- GoLoco: Share trips with your family or friends and will connect you with potential carpoolers.
Please share you carpooling experiences or if you have used website to connect up with others to carpool.
Healthy, All Natural Pet Food
Our pets are our family and we should make sure to treat them that way. Pet food can often be an afterthought, but it shouldn’t be for the sake of our pets health. By feeding our loving pets all natural pet food, we can keep them healthy for years to come ( just like my cat Rivers below )
Deceiving Marketing
The biggest problem in the pet food industry is that there is little to no standards in the quality of the food. Often times, pet food manufacturers market their product as contain top quality ingredients, especially when it comes to meat. Have you taken the time to actually read the label of any of the popular brands of pet food? Let’s take a look at two very different brands of pet food to see what the difference is.
Popular Pet Food Brand
Healthy Pet Food
It’s pretty clear from the labels which is better. I have seen many commercials for the first brand of pet food and look at what’s the first ingredient, ground yellow corn. Do you think that are pets needs corn as the first ingredient in their food? There are also tons of artificial flavorings and colorings that our pets just don’t need. If you take a look at the second one, you can see all natural meats for the first 5 ingredients and quality carbohydrates and fruits and vegetables there on after. The above labels are from dry cat food, but you will find similar results with can foods. The only difference you will find is low quality meats in place of high quality ones in better brands.
Why the low quality?
The main reason that many popular brands of pet food use such low quality meats and carbohydrates is the cost. Many of these companies make us feel that their food is the top quality so that they can sell more of their food. They don’t care about the health of our pets. These brands of food may be much cheaper than some top quality foods, but it shows in the ingredient list. Just think of it in terms of a human diet. It’s like the comparison between fast food and natural foods. Fast foods fill their foods with tons of fat and low quality ingredients just to keep the cost down with little concern for our health. It frustrates me that these pet food companies make such outrageous claims about their products when they are further from the truth.
What they need
Cats and dogs may be domesticated, but still require a similar diet to their wild ancestors. Have you ever seen a lion or dingo in the wild eating corn off the cob or large amounts of rice and wheat? Our pets have similar protein requirements that wild cats and dogs have. If you look at the protein levels in low quality foods, they will be far lower than our pets actually need. They also try to substitute non-meat ingredients that contain low quality proteins to keep their costs down. This same requirement is also necessary in other small animals like ferrets.
Pet Food Diets
There are several different types of pet foods that can comprise our pets diets.
Dry Food
Dry pet food or kibble is the most popular variety and is sold by so many different brands. Dry food in general should not completely comprise our pets diets since it difficult to contain the high levels of protein our pets need. When choosing to buy dry food, make sure to thoroughly inspect the labels and follow the top 5 rule. If the first few ingredients do not contain any meat or contain low quality ingredients, you will want to avoid that product. Just as with our food, if the ingredient sounds artificial or unhealthy, then it probably isn’t good for our pets. Some key ingredient names to avoid include:
- Meat-by-product: Leftover meat parts like intestines, liver and others.
- Ground Corn: Our pets don’t need corn.
- Wheat gluten: The main reason for the big pet food recall 2 years ago.
- Brewer’s Rice: Low quality rice with little nutrition.
For a great definition list of all pet food ingredients, check out all natural pet food Natura’s Ingredient Search.
There are many brands of dog and cat food that contain high levels of quality ingredients including:
- Natura Pet Food including EVO, Innova, California Natural and others.
- Wellness
- Eagle Pack
- Orijens
Canned Food
Canned foods contain much high levels of protein than dry foods simply because they are moist. The same rules apply for canned food as with dry food. Look for high quality proteins and try to avoid canned foods with “gravy”.
Raw Food Diet
Many people have switched from using dry and canned foods to a raw food diet. These diets mimic what our pets would eat if they were wild. Some ingredients include raw meat, uncooked bones, vegetables and fruits. Raw food diets can be bought either frozen or freeze-dried by a variety of companies. Vets don’t often recommend these types of diets because they may not contain all the nutrition that our pets needs, especially vitamins and minerals. A way to try this diet is to mix it with a dry/canned food diet to mix up your pet’s diet.
There are many companies that now sell raw food diets throughout the country and online that include:
- Nature’s Variety
- Northwest Naturals
- BRAVO!
Make Your Own Food
Any popular diet that many people take is to make their own pet food. This can be the most cost-effective way to feed our pets as well as knowing exactly what our pets are eating. Check out this great article on Bargaineering about pros and cons of making your own pet food.
Save Money?
Spending more money on food does not seem like the way to save money, but it can save you money in the long term. Think about the high cost of veterinarian bills as you pets get older. The healthier and more natural the food you feed you pets, the better chance your veterinarian bills will be lower over the life of your pet. Whether the savings is actually more than the money you are spending on your pet is hard to determine. I say that if our pets live longer and are healthier over their lifetime, giving them quality food should not be a question.
Guidance
In general, just make sure to do research on any brand of pet food you buy. At minimum, check the ingredient list of any food before you buy. Dog Food Analysis has some great reviews of many brands of dog food and categorizes them based on their quality of ingredients.
Please share any brands of pet food or diets that you feel are all natural and healthy for you pets.
Refrigerator Energy Savings Tips
Your refrigerator can be one of the highest energy consumers in the kitchen. Making sure that you do everything possible to reduce that energy use can really lower your energy costs every month.
Buying a New Refrigerator
If you current refrigerator is either old or a major energy hog, there is no better time than now to upgrade to a more modern and energy efficient model. Here are a few tips in determining if you should purchase a new refrigerator and what type of refrigerator you should purchase.
Ditch Older Models
Usually when it comes to most electrical devices, the older it is, the more energy it requires to run. This is not always the case, but the majority of older refrigerators use far more energy than their modern counterparts. There are many factors including lesser technology, lower standards and just being old. Let me elaborate on that last one a little further. The more a refrigerator is used and the older it gets, parts on it begin to ware and require more energy to operate the same way they did when it was first purchased. If you refrigerator is older than 30 years and may not be in the best of shape, it’s time to replace that refrigerator. Actually anything prior to 1997 when the federal government enacted energy standards with refrigerators would be a candidate to replace.
Break Even Point
There is a certain period of time in which the cost of purchasing a new energy efficient refrigerator is covered by its energy savings. This may be many years, but there is a specific amount of time to reach that point. I did a little calculations with my energy calculator to determine the break even point at which an old refrigerator with an energy use of 1800 kwh/year as compared to a more energy efficient refrigerator that uses 500 kwh/year. Let’s say that the new refrigerator costs $500 and energy cost of 11¢ per kwh to make calculations simple.
Refrigerator Comparison
| Week | Month | Year | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Old Refrig. | $3.79 | $16.24 | $197.54 |
| New Refig. | $1.05 | $4.51 | $54.93 |
| Difference | $2.74 | $11.73 | $142.61 |
This means that each year, there is potentially $142 in savings and a break even point of 3 ½ years. That a pretty short period of time to cover the entire cost of a new energy efficient refrigerator. In order to figure out the kwh energy use of your current refrigerator, refer to its manual or try using the P3 Kill-A-Watt.
Energy Star
Energy Star appliances can use up to 20% less energy than models meeting today’s federal standards and 40% less than models prior to 2001. You can also receive local rebates on your new purchase of any Energy star appliance. One word of caution with upgrading your appliance is if you buy a larger model. If you were to go from a smaller fridge to a massive one, you may not save any energy even though it is Energy Star rated.
Energy Saving Tips
You don’t necessarily mean that you have to buy a new refrigerator, as there are other small ways you can save. All of the following make sure that your fridge doesn’t have to work harder than it needs to.
- Keep the Doors Closed: Make sure to not keep the refrigerator doors open for long and close them immediately when finished.
- Allow Items to Cool: This is one I hear all the time and it does save energy. Allow items to cool completely before putting them in your fridge.
- Don’t Overcrowd: Don’t overfill your refrigerator and be sure to empty items out old or spoiled food items.
- Proper Maintenance: This is common sense, but take care of your fridge and get any need repairs to make sure it’s running efficiently.
- Door Seals: Ensure that the door seals are tightly fitting against the fridge.
BigBelly Solar Powered Trash Compactors in Philly
Photo by specialkrb.
I got a chance to walk around Philadelphia, PA a few weekends ago and to my surprise I saw a high-tech trash can that I had to check out. It turns out that it was a solar powered trash compactor that was introduced to the city just this past April. Unfortunately I didn’t have a camera to take a picture, but the picture to the left is what it looked like.
Major cities all across the country are beginning to use the BigBelly solar trash compactors to eliminate the problem of overflowing trash. I think these compactors are a great addition to any urban population where trash is overflowing requiring workers to constantly being replace trash bags. I applaud Philly for using these compactors along with other cities across America who have already adopted them. Boston, Baltimore, Chicago, Los Angeles and Houston are just a few of these cities. I haven’t seen any in Baltimore yet, but it’s great news to hear that they do have some.
The BigBelly trash compactor may not solve all the problems that are happening in our cities, but it at least is helping to ease the trash situation that many have. This device could be the beginning to more advanced technologies to further help cities with their trash problems and do so while using a renewable energy like solar.
Share you thoughts on these solar trash compactors and if you have seen one in your local area.
Discovering a Friendly Way to Deal with Industrial Plant Waste
Most people don’t think twice about disposing of fruit and vegetable waste. In fact, having a compost pile in your yard can be a great way to get rid of many types of organic material, with the added benefit of having a ready supply of soil for your garden.
However, on a much larger scale fruit and vegetable waste is not so easily disposed of in an environmentally friendly manner.
The Size of the Problem
To give you an idea of how much fruit and vegetable waste is created everyday, at Mercabarna, which is the main distribution point for fruits, vegetables, and meats in Barcelona Spain, almost 100 tons of Fruit and Vegetable Waste is created everyday.
In India, over 15,500 Tons of Fruit and Vegetable Waste is created everyday and most of this waste is simply dumped in a landfill.
Where Plant Waste Usually Ends Up
One of the reasons that fruit and vegetable waste usually ends up in a landfill is that most other disposal methods require that the waste is treated first. So, loading the waste into a landfill is the easiest and quickest method of getting rid of it. It is also not uncommon for the waste to be incinerated, which releases dangerous chemicals into the atmosphere.
Unfortunately as is often the case, the easiest way is not the most environmentally way.
In fact, even though plants are organic, there are many types of fruit and vegetable waste, such as those produced from olive mills, which do not break down naturally.
Since the industries that produce and process fruits and vegetables are so often guilty of inefficient processing methods, which create a good deal of pollution, it is imperative to find ways to dispose of fruit and vegetable waste in a way that does not hurt the environment.
Recycle, Reduce, Reuse
One of the most important ways of controlling the amount of fruit and vegetable waste that ends up in the landfill is to find uses for as many of the byproducts created during production as possible.
All too often, once the actual product is created, whether it is fruit juice, olive oil, or nuts, all of the byproducts are simply discarded. There are, however, quite literally thousands of ways that these byproducts could actually be used.
For example, in Mediterranean areas, the almond represents one of the biggest cash crops. This is in large part because almond trees can be grown easily in areas where other crops would not flourish. When the almonds are harvested, the shells are usually burned.
However, instead of simply incinerating the almond shells, it is possible to grind them up and use them as a soil-less growing medium.
In fact, tomatoes have been shown to be very responsive to this type growing medium, which is less expensive than rock wool and since it could be produced locally, would reduce transportation emissions. There would also be a commercial market for this product and it could be used in places where the soil is of poor quality.
It is also possible to reuse plant waste to create flavorings, natural insecticides, colorings, cooking ingredients, and even dietary supplements. These types of substances are called phytochemicals and can be made from the pomace of many types of fruits and vegetables. Pomace, which is the part of the fruit or vegetable that is left over after it has been squeezed for juice, is often discarded.
For instance, olive pomace, which is not very biodegradable, can be used to prevent the spread of nematodes on tomatoes.
Citrus pomace is another great example and has been shown to be an effective ant-fungicide, crop insect repellent, and baking product.
There are a number of other ways that pomace from most types of fruits and vegetables, such as apples, carrots, mangoes, and grapes, can be used in baked goods, as a stabilizer, or as a source of protein and fiber in diet foods.
Discovering a Green Way to Use Plant Waste
While today, many industries simply dispose of the byproducts created during the production cycle, this is neither good for the environment, nor is it a sustainable behavior if we are to preserve the Earth for the future generations.
Instead, finding ways to recycle and reuse these kinds of waste products is essential and is also often quite profitable.
About the Author
Tiger is the chief editor and contributor at mobilitytiger.com, which is a site that offers information on a number of health and medical topics. The diabetes resource center at Tiger’s site offers regularly updated information and news events that relate to diabetes mellitus, which is an endocrine disease that is found in millions of people every year.
Biobag 100% Biodegradable Bags
BioBag is America’s best selling brand of 100% biodegradable and compostable bags that are made from corn. So many people currently use polyethelene plastic bags for their trash cans or for our lawn, but they can take thousands of years to degrade. Using a a biodegradable product like BioBags makes complete sense when our trash only ends up in landfills landfill anyways.
About BioBag
BioBag is located out of Palm Harbor, Florida. The main reason for creating his bags because traditional plastic bags are not digested by microorganism and thus are not biodegradable. They believe that plastic has its purposes for things that are supposed to last, but not for disposable items. BioBag products on the other hand are 100% biodegradable and compostable. Under normal conditions, a BioBag can completely decompose within 1-3 months and in just about 10 days when put in a compost. Here’s an interview with Terry Phillips from BioBag on the benefits of using their bags:
There are a variety of bags produced by BioBag besides just kitchen and leaf bags:
- Dog Waste Bags
- Cat Pan Liners
- Composting System bags
- Bio-Toilet bags
- Shopping Bags
BioBag has receive national attention by being recommended by both Oprah.com and MarthaSturat.com as well as making several major news programs, magazines and journals. There bags meet a variety of standards worldwide including the Biodegradable Products Institute’s certification. BioBag also has a certification to ensure that all of the soy inks used on their bags do not contain metallic content.
Mater-Bi
Mater-Bi is the material that BioBag uses to make all of its bags. It’s made form an Italian research company Novamont out of the belief that materials from agriculture origin will return into the earth. It was the first bio-polymer ever invented that is both biodegradable and compostable. The material is made from a non-genetically altered corn starch that is easy to work with and can be used on the same equipment as some traditional plastics. This makes it easy for companies to print and color on Materi-Bi just as they would with plastic.
Review
I use BioBag products on a regular basis. I have tried many of their bags including the tall kitchen bags and leaf bag with great results in both uses. The Mater-Bi material has a similar feel to plastic and feels just as durable as it as well. Because these bags are biodegradable, they are not going to be a strong as some extremely strong plastic bags like the Glad Force Flex. Should our kitchen bags really be that strong though? I have only had one tear, which was my fault. I was able to test how biodegradable and compostable these bags really are with the leaf bag that I broke. I was a little skeptical that it wouldn’t degrade in my composter, but I was proven wrong. It did take a little longer than 10 days that I mentioned above, but it only took a few weeks to break down. I know that it did break down because I stir my compost bin on a regular basis. I have been happy with how strong these bags are and would recommend their use to anyone.
Where to Buy?
Being the most popular brands of biodegradable bags, BioBag is available in a number of online retailers along with almost any local natural food store. Most of their bags are comparably priced to traditional plastic bags you would buy in the grocery store, at around $5 (depending on the type and count of bags ).
