Many local businesses are implementing sustainable practices, working to take care of the planet and their customers.
Kickstarting sustainable living is easier than one might think. It all comes down to items that impact daily living, or, as Eco Fill Shop owner Joci Blank said, “Being conscious of each item that we use for mundane tasks.”
Blank began her Joci and Friends LLC in 2010, providing private cleaning services. As an environmental studies graduate from Bowling Green State University, Blank soon realized the cleaning products she used were not only filled with forever chemicals but were also packaged in wasteful single-use plastic containers.
Inspired, Blank found a resource that sold bulk, forever-chemical-free cleaning products. Desiring to share her resources with others, Blank began a porch refill drop-off and delivery, which she eventually turned into her storefront business, the Eco Fill Shop.
The shop primarily features body and hair care refills and cleaning products.
“I picked bath and body and health cleaning because those consumables we use the most of, and those are the ones that end up in the waterways,” Blank said. “I wanted to pick products that made the most impact locally.”
While Blank began her store in Bowling Green (BG), finances made her move to a storefront in Grand Rapids.
Despite this move, Blank is a native Falcon and desires BG businesses to make sustainable strides and to practice conscious consumerism.
“Be super conscious about what you’re packaging your food in,” Blank said. “Pay attention to what you’re buying and how you’re contributing.”
While BG no longer has its own eco-station, some BG businesses are moving to implement more sustainable practices.
Novel Blends recently started using glass and ceramic cups for dine-in orders to reduce waste from paper and plastic coffee cups.
“We are [also] considering saving our used coffee and espresso grounds for gardening and compost,” Novel Blends owner Shelly Stoepler said in a message.
Additionally, both Novel Blends and Grounds For Thought sell used books, keeping them from the landfill and in local circulation to be read time and time again.
The Clay Pot Bistro has also implemented sustainable practices.
“All [veggie] scraps go into a food storage container for the week, and then we turn that into our house-made veggie stock,” Clay Pot Bistro Owner Veronica Mierzejewski said in a message. “We also use compostable to-go containers so that our customers can choose to compost them or recycle them.”
Sustainable practices you can implement as a consumer
· Buy local and support small businesses rather than large commercial ones such as Amazon.
· Thrift instead of buying new.
· Bring your own bags to stores to reduce single-use plastic bags and microplastic exposure.
· Check out BGSU’s Campus ReStore.
· Shop at BG’s local farmers market, rather than buying from a large, commercial grocery.
