This is not something I would recommend for everyday use. However we often get questions on the strength of the non-woven reusable shopping bags that are becoming such a staple for our industry, and this image seemed a great way to explain a point.

The point is green can be tough. A reusable non-woven bag does not mean a wimpy bag.

This is a photograph sent to us by our friends at Debco showing off the strength of their NW4060 FOLDING NON-WOVEN TOTE BAG.

The motor in the photo is a 1986 model year 20HP Yamaha, checking in at a weight of 110 lbs. The photo came about via a challenge that Debco put to their employees, asking them to really put the strength of their bags to the test.

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A number of manufacturers have started to sell pre-printed shopping bags in their eco-friendly lines. These bags have a pre-printed eco-friendly message to which the Ecopreneurists simply add their own logo.

This is a great way for Ecopreneurists to get more bang for their buck as the full color detail in these bags used to mean that a buyer would need to be doing runs in the 10,000s and pay for full imprint, full bag setups, that could have run as high as $1,000.

As an example let us look at two new bags, the PET pre-printed Jumbo Grocery Tote from Debco and the pre-printed Laminated Non-Woven Large Shopper Tote from Leeds.

The Debco PET preprinted Jumbo Grocery Tote can be ordered at as few as 50 units. Bag size is 4” W x 16” H x 7.75” D,  a size designed to replace up to four standard sized plastic bags. The bag is pre-printed pattern of three environmental messages, like “I USED TO BE A PLASTIC BOTTLE”.

As a bonus, Debco’s PET pre-printed Jumbo Grocery Tote also comes with a hang tag listing the bag’s environmental properties. The bag is SGS China certified. EQP on PET pre-printed Jumbo Grocery Tote is $3.12.

Runs of the pre-printed Laminated Non-Woven Large Shopper Tote from Leeds start higher at 288 unit runs. They feature reinforced handles and binding for added durability, plus a 10 inch drop handle height. Their pre-printed design also supports environmentally friendly themes.

The Laminated Non-Woven Large Shopper Tote is made from 100% recyclable material with an exterior label that affirms this claim.

According to Leeds the bag’s laminated material is water resistant and hand-wipeable, making it ideal for both shopping and beach trips.

The bag size is 14″ H x 6.5″ W x 16″ L and made from 110gm polypropylene (110gLamNWPP). EQP on the Laminated Non-Woven Large Shopper Tote is $2.15.

If you are ASI or PPAI and wish to learn more about the full line of eco-friendly totes at Debco contact Andrew Green. For more on what Leeds is up to contact Mary Beach.

If you are interested in these items to promote your own business contact your local promotional items vendor or email info@proformagreen.com for information and pricing.

Ok, the title is a little extreme, but in the run up to Earth Day it is amazing the lengths some of the manufacturers are reaching to get our attention regarding eco-friendly items. It is nice to see that so many manufacturers are now providing green solutions. It really looks like 2009 is a tipping point for the industry.

How do I know? Because the eco-friendly mouse pads have arrived.

What this article’s title was meant to imply is that in 2009 a lot of manufacturers have started to sell eco-friendly computer mouse pads. Really, they seem to be everywhere.

And since tech companies - and tech ecopreneurists - seem to always be at the cutting edge of green, these make really good promo items. Think about it, your client will see them every day. Good for employee gifts as well. Everyone needs a mouse pad right?

Some of our favorites:

The new Eco–Soft™ Mouse Mat® (Patents Pending) from HandStands Promotional likely leads the pack. This pad looks really good and also happens to be made of post-consumer and post-industrial, non-skid, recycled rubber.  The HandStands website claims the material is so luxuriously soft it is often mistaken for suede leather in look and feel.  As a bonus these pads - sorry mats -  also have a antimicrobial surface keeping germs from growing and spreading, so HandStands calls them “CLEAN and GREEN”.  The units measure 8 3/4″ X 7 7/8″ and are 3mm thick with a imprint Area of 4″ X 1 1/2″. Colors are sand, camel, blue and black. EQP is $5.25

The Cork Mouse Pad from Debco uses a very old material - cork - to make a modern day tool. These pads measure 8.75″ W x 7.25″ H x 0.25″D and are from 100% natural, recyclable, renewable and biodegradable cork. No trees are harmed in the harvesting of cork. The pads themselves are both lightweight and durable. Imprint area is 8” W x 6.75” H. EQP is $3.17

The Recycled Cardboard Mousepad from Leeds (not shown) is another basic model - really you would have thought someone would have thought of this before -  made simply from 100% recycled cardboard. The Recycled Cardboard Mousepad features a deboss of the universal recycle symbol on every pad, plus your logo, and it is also easily mailable based on weight and size. EQP is $2.00.

If you are looking for a eco-friendly mouse pad that looks more like a traditional mouse pad, then the RECYCLED Soft Surface Mouse Pad from World Wide Line is likely more to your tastes. This 7” x 8” x 1/8” pad has a soft surface top which allows for full color printing with a full bleed. World Wide actually has three sizes of these pads, all at 1/8” thick. The pads can be turned for both 2 and 3 day rush orders. World Wide says that the ” eco friendly mouse pads consist of 50% post industrial waste combined with 50% materials from sustainable resources”.

For more on these items visit the websites or email us at info@proformagreen.com.

The new nonwoven material umbrella with all bamboo shaft from Debco looks and acts like any other umbrella out there. But this one is eco-friendly.

Ok, perhaps with the all bamboo construction on this model the umbrella looks a little better than your average promotional item umbrella, but the point is that this unit is another example of the new green promotional items coming to market that act green without necessarily looking green.

The 48” arc of nonwoven material is number #5 recyclable - the same material as used in grocery totes. Thanks to that fact the umbrella is available in all the colors of your common shopping tote as well, so black, lime green, royal blue, red and white are all available. The nonwoven used is 50 gram polypropylene with 30 GSM water resistant lamination.

The patent pending design features a 100% natural bamboo shaft with curved handle. Fiberglass ribs have been added for strength and durability - not very eco there - and the umbrella has a basic Velcro tie closure. EQP pricing on this large umbrella is $15.43 with one color imprint.

Of course for the Ecopreneurists looking to use an umbrella in their marketing campaign all the old standbys work for an eco umbrella as well. Slogans like “we have you covered”, “bringing you in from the rain”, etc. And they of course work everywhere traditional umbrellas do so they are a great idea for Ecopreneurists targeting things like golf events, restaurants and cafes, and hotels.

For more information on these items and the other great stuff from Debco email Andrew Green. If you are looking to order, email info@proformagreen.com or contact your local promotional products seller.

I have written about Norwood before, they are one of the lions in our industry in terms of size, product line and experience. In 2009 Norwood is continuing to expand their line of promotional items with green and eco-friendly credentials, including several new organic cotton totes.

Finding the right tote is always a bit of a hassle for marketing teams, and with convention season and indeed Earth Day right around the corner, many Ecopreneurists want to make sure their bags stand out in the crowds.

Well, Norwood’s new Organic Wide Handle Tote is a great example of a fashionable yet practical tote bag that does stand out, and that most Ecopreneurist would be proud to brand with their company or organization name.

Made from 7 oz. 100% certified organic cotton duck the bag boasts a modern, streamlined design, spacious main compartment and extra large imprint area. Norwood even offers a 24hr turn on this bag, so it is available for last minute projects.

According to Norwood, the majority of the organic cotton fabric they use comes from Indian growers with the fabric being produced by certified raw material suppliers in that country. The cotton is certified organic under the scheme of GOTS and the Organic Exchange by the Control Union (formerly known as SKAL) which is internationally accepted. All organic cotton used by Norwood is certified by the Control Union, regardless of the source of the material.

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Debco has likely the most jute bags available from a domestic supplier. Andrew Green of Debco was at this year’s Proforma regional meeting in Dallas showing off a number of their bags, including the E4732 Jute Tote, E4542 Basic Jute Tote, E6708 Laminated Jute Tote and E4478 Jute Cotton Blend Tote.

Granted Debco should develop some more catchy names for their bags, but in general they have great products. Here is Andrew talking about the Laminated Jute Tote.

For more information on these bags please visit the Debco website or email info@proformagreen.com.

For more videos including videos on Debco’s great folding PET tote and new stainless steel water bottles see http://www.youtube.com/proformagreen.

]]> http://ecopreneurist.com/2009/02/07/video-jute-from-debco/feed/ http://ecopreneurist.com/2009/01/30/debcos-2009-green-book-now-available/ http://ecopreneurist.com/2009/01/30/debcos-2009-green-book-now-available/#comments Sat, 31 Jan 2009 00:24:24 +0000 John Simonetta http://ecopreneurist.com/2009/01/30/debcos-2009-green-book-now-available/

This is a guest post by John Simonetta, owner of an eco-friendly promotional items consultancy (see proformagreen.com). John’s blogs are designed to keep us up to date on the “greening” of his industry.

Debco’s 2009 Green Book -  focused on eco-friendly and green promotional items - is now available as a .pdf at http://www.debcosolutions.com/EN-US/images/pdf/Debco_Inspirations_USA_Edition.pdf.

At 108 pages it is a big book with lots of ideas.

I am sure we will be running articles on individual items from the Green Book in future, but I wanted to get the information out there so any Ecopreneurist planning their 2009 marketing budgets or events has the information to work with now.

And a tip of the hat to Debco for using .pdf instead of paper for the main distribution of their catalog.

If you have specific questions on items in the 2009 Green Book from Debco contact Debco’s own Jermy Green or contact us at info@proformagreen.com.

We wrote about Gemline’s online green site with its virtual catalog. Well Debco has gone one better (make that three better) and posted three vitual catalogs, their 2008 GIFT BOOK, MAIN CATALOGUE, and GREEN BOOK. Looks like this is the way things are head in 2009, less paper printing, less gas used in shipping, so good for Debco.

Of course of these virtual catalog Ecopreneurists will be most interested in the GREEN BOOK which contains 56 virtual pages of products and green information, including a much appreciated glossary of terms.

We especially like Debco’s organic and natural cotton bags, however the catalog covers promotional items from bags to bamboo cutting boards to solar powered items.

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Debco now offers a number of lunchtime totes made from at least 25% recycled content. These bags demonstrate the growing trend to make practical, green items available to marketers.

And with the slowing economy I would remind Ecopreneurists that there is likely a much wider audience for these bags as more and more folks are bringing lunch to the office both for economic (it is cheaper than eating out) and health (bringing in healthy foods and avoiding fast foods) reasons.

Simple non woven insulated lunch coolers like the Debco Bag #NW4517 are EQP $3.04 with a one color imprint. The Debco Bag #NW6915 (a square shape designed) are EQP $3.42.  Available in black, red, lime green and royal blue, the bag we seem to be having the most success with is the Debco Bag #NW4694 non woven 100 gram polypropylene insulated cooler pictured to the right. All these bags are made from 25% recycled material, and Debco lists them as biodegradable on the Debco website.

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This is a guest post by John Simonetta, owner of ProformaGreen, an eco-friendly promotional items consultancy. John’s blogs are designed to keep us up to date on the “greening” of his industry.

At the end of September Debco bag introduced the E4827 10oz Organic Cotton Shopper to round out their other offerings in this area of the 6oz and Econo 4oz Organic Cotton Shopping bags. It is good timing considering the end of the year Fall festiva

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