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.

Bag Makers, Inc. has come out swinging in the nonwoven tote category with their new Big Thunder nonwoven tote bags. These bags are made from #5 plastic and like other nonwovens can be recycled wherever #5 plastics are accepted.

The Big Thunder’s claim to fame is not that it is eco-friendly - it is as much as any other nonwoven tote. The Big Thunder’s claim to fame is that it is huge - at 13W x 10 x 15H - and made on 100 GSM material the highest in the industry for standard run bags. That is a whopping 10 inch gusset. The bags rings in with a EQP price of just $2.22.

If you are an Ecopreneurist whose business requires a big bag to promote your big idea, your bag has arrived.

Here is Anna Marie from Bag Makers showing the Big Thunder off at the 2009 ASI show in Dallas.

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For more information on the Big Thunder visit the Bag Makers website or email us at info@proformagreen.com

For 2009 Hit Promotional Products has come out with a Nonwoven Insulated shopper tote bag that their website claims is recyclable, reusable and hand washable.

The unit is made out of 90 gram non-woven, coated water-resistant polypropylene. They feature reinforced 23″ handles, a 9″ gusset, front pocket and zippered closure.

Since the tote is designed to keep food hot or cold it is a good promotional item for eco-friendly grocery stores, farmer markets, even travel agencies.

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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.

Nonwoven Poly bags [Polypropylene] are some of the most popular bags on the market today because they are cheap and strong. You see them everywhere heavy stuff is getting carried around, the book store, farmers market, etc. They do their job great.

However I have written before that nonwoven bags are not recyclable.

Well in that respect it seems I was wrong. There are a number of nonwoven bags from manufactures like Jetline and Hit Promotional Products that are recyclable. These bags have a recycle rating of 5 and number 5 plastics can be recycled through some local curbside programs.

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

Jetline is entering the nonwoven market strong this season. As I mentioned in another blog Jetline currently has what I think are the lowest cost quality nonwoven shopping totes on the market today.

Now Jetline has just introduced two new nonwoven messenger style bags. This is a great idea because shopping totes are fine but they are a little boring. These new messenger bags are great for Ecopreneurists that target colleges, schools and generally a younger, hipper crowd.

But are they green? As most folks now poly nonwoven bags are made from plastic - polyprop is an oil derivative. However many people say, “so what, they are cheap, reusable and long lasting, they keep tradional plastic bags out of the landfills and trees on the mountains”.

Proforma Green sells messenger bags that are organic cotton and PET. A number of vendors can supply such bags. But because these messengers are nonwovens and from Jetline they are very cheap. For example we sell the Value Nonwoven Messenger Bag at $0.99 with one color imprint for a minimum run of 200 bags.

But again, are they green?

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