Crate & Barrel Adds More Sustainable Pieces
by Kara DiCamillo, Newport, Rhode Island on 02.29.08
After our initial launch, we were thrilled to find Crate & Barrel's Kona rug. And over the past few years we’ve covered the company's various eco-products, such as their glass food storage containers, their Bamboo Bento collection and, in the past year, their “green sofa.” Nowadays, we’re amazed at what they’ve come up with.
At first, we were skeptical of Crate & Barrel’s most recent e-newsletters, touting their commitment to sustainability, but we’re beginning to see that this might not be a case of your average green washing. “The best place to start making the world a better place is right at home,” reads the introduction to the environmental part of their website. “At Crate & Barrel, green is not a trend. It’s an ongoing mission.”
The company, known for their signature black and white logo on their bags and boxes, is phasing out the use of white bleached board and paper in favor of a more eco-friendly renewable fiber that contains post-consumer recyclable material. Additionally, in 2008 the logo will be printed on these materials using water-based inks. Every catalogue published by Crate & Barrel is published on paper certified by the FSC and are made from up to 30 percent post-consumer recycled paper. And, according to the website, they have “diligently worked to improve our database to make sure mailing lists are up to date and accurate to avoid mailing duplicates and undeliverable catalogues.”
Crate & Barrel’s most recent product releases include upholstered sofa and chair frames certified by the FSC and cushions made from soy- and corn-based foam and fibers. We’ve also seen their use of hemp, organic cotton, bamboo and linen increase as well whenever possible in so many different products.
The website tells us that there are many, many more eco-friendly products in Crate & Barrel’s future. We can’t wait to see them. ::Crate & Barrel ::Environment Page
