Product Review: Stonyfield Farm Organic

Photo by longhorndave on Flickr using Creative Commons.

Back when I was first switching to organic dairy and soy products I tried a lot of yogurt. For years I'd stuck primarily with one conventional yogurt brand, so the experiment was rather traumatic at first. (I nearly gave up trying to find a new favorite altogether when I tried a popular soy yogurt and was scarred for life - I have never tried another...or soy ice cream, for that matter, yet I do enjoy other organic, non-GMO soy products on occasion.)

But then I tried Stonyfield Farm Organic yogurt and found that it was quite pleasing to the palate. I wasn't yet a groupie, but the happy cow logo, the lack of sugar in the plain version, a clear statement that the product contained no preservatives or artificial ingredients, no growth hormones, no pesticides, and no use of antibiotics, and the company's commitment to donating a portion of their profits to environmental causes sufficiently satisfied my desire to remain a conscious consumer. I later found out that they also have a solar roof which produces some of their own renewable energy, their packaging is BPA-free, they purchase carbon emissions offsets, and that the company partners with Preserve (the company that makes my toothbrush) to recycle packaging into toothbrushes, razors, and more! To learn more about the company's environmental practices, click here, and see the information at the bottom of the partnership page about how and where to send your used yogurt cups.) The site also has coupons available, for those who wish to live organically on a budget.

I had begun purchasing the plain yogurt in the larger containers in order to cut down on plastic use and per-meal cost. It wasn't until I decided one day to try one of the myriad of flavor choices that I struck gold, though. I brought a Chocolate Underground individual yogurt to work with me one day, and as I (mostly mindlessly) began to consume it I was caught by surprise. I literally stopped to check the packaging - had I actually bought yogurt? I was sure what I was eating was an ice cream sundae or a Boston creme pie. Nope - still yogurt. I checked again - live, active cultures, same happy cow, still organic. Huh. Wait. STOP! Fat Free?????? Only 170 calories? I was in Heaven, and I felt the need to shout from the mountain tops!

In fact I did text my foodie friends immediately, only to come down from my high several minutes later and realize that if the entire world began to relish in the chocolatey goodness that is Chocolate Underground, it would be flying off the shelves so fast that I wouldn't be able to find it anymore. On the other hand, I just can't keep this secret - it's too good not to share! The other downside is that this Chocolate Underground only comes in the individual containers, thereby creating more plastic waste. Yowza, what a buzz kill. If you purchase them, check to see where you can recycle these containers in your community, or check the link above for information about how to send your containers back to Stonyfield for recycling.

Incidentally, I had a similar experience (of checking to be sure I wasn't eating a ton of sugar and fat and hormones) with the Stonyfield Farm Organic Creme Caramel Lowfat Frozen Yogurt. (Click on the name listed under Lowfat Frozen Yogurt for nutrition information.)

Mmmmmmm....moooooooo! There's very little that makes me happier than enjoying (mostly) guilt-free dairy from happy cows! :)

Lip Service (Product Review: Burt's Bees Lip Balm)

Photo by Rakka on Flickr using Creative Commons.

So, a while back I promised to post some product reviews - and then life happened and I didn't get around to doing that. But, I figure, better late than never, no? ;) I'm a big fan of reviews and often wish I can find some for the products I'm interested in comparing, so hopefully you'll find some of this information helpful in your own comparison shopping. :)

In today's post I'll review one of my favorite lip products, but look for upcoming posts on other products in the (relatively) near future. To make things easy, I'm using a 1-5 scale for the review - 1 being the lowest score, 5 being highest. The scores reflect my opinion about each of the products individually, and not in comparison to one another, so the scores are not meant to be ranks between the different products, but instead reflect an overall score for the individual product. The overall product score is simply an average of all the product's category scores combined.

For the Health/Safety category I consult each product's ingredients list and cross-referenced it with EWG's Skin Deep Cosmetic Safety Database. My score is subjective, not scientific, and is not taken directly from the EWG site, so please check their site if you want to see what they think about it. Further, if you have allergies, always consult your physician and the product's ingredients before trying a new product.

Prices, of course, are subject to variability. Where possible, I pulled the price directly from the company's web site.

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Burt's Bees - Beeswax Lip Balm - Overall 4.3 (out of 5)
This is the basic variety in a tube (not tin) - no color, no SPF, and no honey.

• Aesthetics: 5
  

Since this lip balm is clear, there's not much to comment on its appearance. It is a balm and not a gloss, and it is virtually impossible to tell (visually) that you have it on. However, I have noticed that whenever I put it on my lips they magically look pinker and more healthy.

• Performance: 5
  

This product performs about as well as any other lip balm does, but the peppermint oil makes it so much nicer to wear and smell (if you like peppermint). Many lip balms are made from petroleum byproducts, which just grosses me out; this balm is from beeswax, and so I don't gag when I think about how much of it I must consume with my food and beverages.

It feels light, not gooey, gummy, or sticky, and it wears well under other lip products or alone. It's also important to note that the peppermint oil in this product creates a cool, tingling sensation for a short while after application - if you do not like that sensation, you may not like this product. On the flip side, when I put it on I instantly feel like I have minty-fresh breath! I keep several tubes of this stuff on-hand at all times.

• Price: 3 ($3.00)

While this tube of "lip goo" (as I refer to all lip balms) will not break the bank and is mostly in line with similar products, the price does seem a little exorbitant. I remind myself, though, that I'll spend just as much on the occasional Starbucks beverage - which I will consume in less than an hour - whereas this tube will last me for months.

• Health/Safety: 4

There appear to be some concerns with the essential oils in this product, particularly with the peppermint oil. For those who do not have reactions to essential oils, it seems to me to be an otherwise mostly natural product.

• Enviro-Friendliness: 4.5
  

The environmental friendliness of this company has come into question since it was purchased by Clorox (see note below), but the Burt's Bees subdivision is adamant that it will uphold the values of the first owners. The company appears dedicated to transparency and offers quite a lot of information on its web site regarding their environmental efforts.

Many vegans will avoid this product because they feel that collecting beeswax and honey is harmful to the bees. However, the company (Burt's Bees, not Clorox) does not test any product or ingredient on animals.

The lip balm's tube is made from recycled plastic and is minimally packaged without the use of shrink wrap. Additionally, the company purchases land in tandem with The Nature Conservancy to protect it from development and has initiatives aimed at contributing to The Greater Good, including the donation of 10% of profits to selected partners. Further, according to the Burt's Bees website, they were a key player in helping to develop The National Standard for Personal Care Products.

• Notes:
  

This has been one of my favorite products for a number of years. I keep a tube of this lip balm in my purse and at my bedside year-round (I put it on every night before going to bed). I've even used it when my nose has been chapped or stuffy; I put a little on my finger and applied it to the nose (so the stick never touched my nose...ew! what where you thinking??), and although the peppermint stung a little at first, the coolness was refreshing and the beeswax protected the skin from further damage.

In 200(7?), the company that makes Clorox bleach purchased Burt's Bees from its original owners, which was the source of much alarm and sadness amongst die-hard Burt's Bees fans. I vowed not to purchase it again and went in search of other similar balms (I did find another similar one, to be shared in an upcoming post). In the end, The Clorox Company and the spokespeople for Burt's Bees said they would maintain the standards of the Burt's Bees company, and as I read the ingredients lists and other reviews and articles from bloggers and news media, I became more comfortable with this fact and purchased a few more tubes. Only time will tell how long Clorox will maintain my loyalty, but for now I'm still a fan.

Please also note that the Burt's Bees web site indicates that the ingredients for this lip balm differ slightly when it is in the tin container.

Riddles, Reviews, and Surprises On the Way!

For the first half of this post I wish to share with you the fruits of my green-searching - researching green products and practices (see the end of the post for the riddle). I refer to a comprehensive list of do's, don'ts, and dirty dozens (here, here, and here) before deciding to purchase a new product or implement a new household rule. Here's the short version of that list (in no particular order):

• Organic, when possible
• Safe (and usually pronounceable) ingredients - the shorter the list, the better
  
• Checks out with the Cosmetics Database - I prefer products with a rating of 3 or below
  
• Vegan (though I am not)
• Not tested on animals
• Minimal and/or recycled/reused packaging
• Local, when possible
• Sustainable, where applicable
  
• Fair Trade, where applicable
  
• Bulk products, when possible
• Glass or paper over plastic packaging
• Affordable (which of course is somewhat subjective)
  

Burghilicious and I recently had a conversation whereby we agreed that there exists no truly environmentally conscious beauty product. They are all inherently additives (applied directly to your face or body, nonetheless), and most are packaged in small quantities, then shipped all across the globe to reach their destination. That said, until and unless I am willing to give up even my minimal makeup and beauty regime altogether, I will continue to search for better alternatives. (In a future post: Mixing your own beauty products.)

Anyway, I've been searching forever for a safer and more environmentally friendly alternative to my favorite lipstick (aptly named Tenderheart). It took years for me to settle on my signature color, and now that I've used it for all of my adult life I am finding it next to impossible to find a color match for my preferred shade in a greener brand. I thought I'd found one when I discovered Kiss My Face brand 3wayColor. First, it earned a low score (which is good thing) on the safety hazard scale on the Environmental Working Group's Cosmetics Safety Database: Skin Deep. Second, it has titanium dioxide for extra sunscreen protection. Third, it is vegan and was not tested on animals (or so says the product packaging). Fourth, it contains no artificial colors. Fifth, the product is 100% biodegradable! (Though I don't believe that includes the packaging.) But here's what finally sold me on the product: it can be used as either eye color, lip color, or blush, and it smells and tastes like fruit! (In my case, I purchased one that smelled to me like mango.) I'd say the sweet scent counts as a fourth use as perfume. (Read more about the Kiss My Face company and its standards here.)

However, the downside is that the product does not appear to contain organic ingredients, and while the packaging is minimal, there's no getting around the plastic tube, and I couldn't find any evidence of the shiny paperboard having been recycled. Sad day. The company did print "Please recycle this package" on the box, but considering that this company also prints recycling suggestions on their paper-backed foil, waxed paper, and other non-recyclable containers, I can't say that I'm too impressed by the effort.

The biggest problem is that I don't much like the color I selected (Heather) - and special ordered, which is disappointing because having an extra product that I don't love means I won't use it that often and have wasted precious packaging, product, and $$$. Though I tested it on my hand prior to ordering it, the color turns out a bit too light and shimmery for my complexion and makes me look cold or undead - perfect for Halloween, I suppose, but not for the office. Sigh. Back to the drawing board. Next in line for the role of favorite lipstick is a lip tint from Hemp Organics... I guess I've learned my lesson and will have to test the products directly on my lips for a more accurate color test - I'm just squeamish about doing that with community samplers, even where single-use-and-eco-unfriendly q-tips and tissues are provided.

In the meantime, I'm using a lip brush for every application of my tried-and-true favorite, which allows me to use up the product left in the tube once I've flattened out the tip. (I find this affords me more than 100 additional applications - I probably use it well beyond it's expiration date.)

And now for your long awaited riddle. I don't keep secrets very well, and I'm antsy with anticipation for my next post. Be on the lookout for a surprise post coming soon to a green blog near you, but in the meantime here's a hint:

What used to come only in black and white and now is green all over?

Look for the answer soon! (And more surprises to come!)