Sustainable Packaging: Reducing Your Carbon Footprint and Expenses, Too
An interview with Tom Vielbig, Owner of Backyard Living (Ridgewood, New Jersey)
Why Choosing Quality Products Will Save You Money and Reduce Your Carbon Footprint
When Tom Vielbig and his wife were young – and maybe a little naive – they excitedly bought a brand-new set of furniture for their house. They paid very little for the set, so they thought they were getting a great deal. However, the set they bought was of such low quality that they had to replace it within 1 year!
I chatted with Tom, the owner of Backyard Living in Ridgewood, NJ, and he admitted that they did little to no research, and they were pressured by a slick saleswoman to buy something that was “only available for a limited time”.
Now that Tom has owned Backyard Living for the past 20 years, he has learned a thing or two about identifying high quality, well-crafted furniture items and patio products. He’s also witnessed the difference in how certain manufactures package their products. 10-20 years ago, most companies were using Styrofoam packaging, but more recently, the most innovative manufacturers avoid Styrofoam altogether and opt for more environmentally-friendly packaging materials, like corrugated boxes. Tom shared 3 key points to save you money and help you buy more sustainably in New Jersey.
Buying Higher Quality Products Will Save You Money
High-quality items (that are often more expensive) will save you money in the long run because they will last much longer and, depending on the product, they might last a lifetime. On the other hand, low-quality items might need to be replaced every season or every couple of years, increasing your total cost of ownership (purchase price, plus the costs of operation, repairs and the speed of replacement).
For example: LED lightbulbs are typically 2 or 3 times more expensive to purchase at the store than incandescent or halogen lightbulbs. But, but LED’s use 75% less energy, and last 25 times longer. In fact, a study on lightbulbs by the Consumer Federation of America concluded that buying LED lightbulbs instead of incandescent or halogen lightbulbs for a home with 20 bulbs will save you over $1,000 during a 10-year period (https://consumerfed.org/press_release/incandescent-halogen-light-bulbs-cost-four-five-times-much-time-new-led-light-bulbs/ ) Which means that spending about $55 more today will save you $1,000 over the next 10 years, well worth paying a little bit more for the initial lightbulbs. Plus, you do not need to replace the bulbs every year, which is always a pain, and you will save a ton of energy production reducing your carbon footprint.
When buying a new product, do your research online, but also talk to local experts in Ridgewood, NJ, like Tom at Backyard Living. Even if you don’t end up buying the item from your local shop (even though you should!) at least you will know what to look out for. You’ll receive some education on common traps that are easy to walk into, and you will decrease the chance that you buy a product that will end up costing you significantly more over time.
Buying Higher Quality Products Reduces Waste
Manufacturers that care to produce high-quality items care about every single detail when it comes to the production, sale, and packaging of the product because they want the entire experience to be of high quality. Well-made products significantly reduce the chance that an item will need to be returned, replaced, or shipped back to be fixed.
In return this saves tons of valuable resources and cuts carbon emissions from fuel. Companies that produce high-quality products have invested significantly in the innovation of packaging materials.
Nowadays, a business owner like Tom is only receiving half a bag of Styrofoam packing peanuts a month. 20 years ago, he would maybe have 30 bags full!
Tom let us know that most companies are using corrugated cardboard to ship furniture, and he has actually seen a “significant drop in the number of items that are damaged in the shipping process”.
Additionally, Tom said to “look for certifications on products”. For example, all of the teak wood furniture that Tom sources is FSC certified, meaning that the product is made of sustainably forested teak (https://us.fsc.org/en-us/certification). The trees are allowed to regenerate, or they are replanted, and each piece of furniture can be traced all the way back to the exact tree location. Other common certifications include Energy Star for energy-efficient appliances (https://www.energystar.gov/buildings/facility-owners-and-managers/existing-buildings/earn-recognition/energy-star-certification), the B Corp Certification which ensures the business is benefiting society (https://bcorporation.net), the Fair Trade Certification for coffee and tea ensures safe working environments (https://www.fairtradeamerica.org/shop-fairtrade/fairtrade-products/coffee/), and the Climate Neutral Certification which rigorously ensures that companies are offsetting their carbon footprint (https://www.climateneutral.org).
These certifications are strict. They help to guarantee that your product was made sustainably, and ethically, but it will also mean that the company really cares about the product and its overall integrity.
The next time you are out buying something for your home, pantry, or closet, make sure to look for one of these certifications, and allocate some time to researching other certifications that might be relevant to the category of product you are buying.
"High-quality items (that are often more expensive) will save you money in the long run because they will last much longer and, depending on the product, they might last a lifetime. On the other hand, low-quality items might need to be replaced every season or every couple of years, increasing your total cost of ownership (purchase price, plus the costs of operation, repairs and the speed of replacement)."
Avoid Buying Products That Are Shipped in Styrofoam
Styrofoam is not easy to recycle, it takes hundreds of years to break down, and when it does, it breaks down into really small particles that are impossible to properly dispose of. Additionally, Styrofoam is toxic. Especially when heated (think hot coffee or tea) or ingested by young children. So, if you have little ones in the house please put it out of reach until you properly dispose of it (more on this below).
Styrofoam takes 500 years to decompose in perfect conditions. But the way Styrofoam is dumped into landfills significantly increases that timeline. Experts say that a more realistic projection could be up to 1 million years for Styrofoam to decompose.
Most companies are moving away from the use of Styrofoam altogether as consumers continue to demand alternatives. However, it’s still likely that you might try out a new brand, open the box, and discover the package is completely filled with Styrofoam.
This is can be extremely frustrating if you are environmentally conscious. I recommend that you do your research on the company as far as their packaging is concerned. Environmentally conscious companies will tell you exactly what their products are made of and how they are packaged. Some companies like REI (https://www.climateneutral.org), Allbirds (https://www.climateneutral.org), Revibe (https://revibetech.com), Blueland (http://blueland.com), and many others do not use Styrofoam, and use little to no plastic in their product packaging.
These days, there are so many alternatives to packaging in Styrofoam that if a company is using Styrofoam, I would avoid them at all costs because they are most likely a company that does not value product quality. Instead they most likely value cutting costs, and mass producing the items.
If you’re ever in the situation where you receive Styrofoam in the package, the best option is to re-use it if possible. For example, Tom “drops all of his packing peanuts off at his closest UPS store so they can re-use them”. A little known fact is that you can actually recycle Styrofoam; the catch is that you cannot throw it in your normal New Jersey recycling bin. You need to drop it off at your closest Styrofoam recycling center – depending on whether the Styrofoam was used for food or for packaging and what each facility accepts.
The Greater Picture
Overall, transitioning to buying high-quality products will actually keep money in your pocket and improve the North Jersey environment, and for the entire globe.
When you buy something, you are literally voting with your dollars. So when it comes time to upgrade to new patio furniture, buy a new tv, or a new backpack for your child, don’t be afraid to pay a little extra now, or put in a little extra work in finding the best and most sustainable products, because that initial investment in time and money will greatly payoff for years to come.
If we all do our part to make better, more educated choices, then our future generations will be able to enjoy this beautiful pale blue dot we call home.
Backyard Living, a patio and furniture store, was established in 2000 in Ridgewood, New Jersey. Founder and owner, Tom Vielbig, is passionate about sustainability and being a motivator in the community for educating customers on being more resourceful with our living needs. He carefully considers all the products he purchases and supports – focusing on quality and the impact the goods have on our greater environment.
Visit the Backyard Living website at: https://www.bylnj.com
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