One important part of creating a sustainable laundry routine is swapping to earth-friendly laundry products that don’t contain harmful and toxic chemicals.
In my quest to live a more sustainable life, I have recently set my sights on my laundry routine. There are many small changes you can make to reduce the impact washing your clothes has on the environment.
One important change to make is to switch to eco-friendly laundry products, because the conventional ones you buy in the supermarket are harmful to our environment.
The good news is that there are many UK-based companies out there who put our planet first and sell earth-friendly laundry products.
But this can also make it more difficult, as having a bigger choice can making a decision more challenging.
So in this complete guide, I will tell you all you need to know about swapping to earth-friendly laundry products.
Find Your Eco-Friendly Laundry Detergent Quiz:
By answering 5 multiple choice questions you can get a personal recommendation.
The Main Issues With Conventional Laundry Products
Before we look at what to look for when swapping to earth-friendly laundry products, let’s find out what the issue with conventional laundry products are.
Once we know what the issues are, we will be better able to pinpoint exactly what to look out for in an eco-friendly detergent.
- The chemicals used in conventional laundry detergents are toxic for us and the planet.
- The majority of chemicals used are fossil fuel-derived, so-called petrochemicals.
- Many of the chemicals used aren’t biodegradable, which means they stay in our environment for a very long time.
- Most conventional laundry products come in plastic packaging, with some not being recyclable.
You might wonder why it is allowed to sell these products, if the chemicals they use are actually toxic to humans as well as the environment.
Well, the amounts of these harsh chemicals used are safe. However, the problem is the accumulative effect. Every day these chemicals are released into our waterways, because not all of them are filtered out during the water treatment process.
As most of these chemicals aren’t biodegradable, they stay in the environment and accumulate there. Equally, because we wash our clothes regularly, some of these chemicals, such as fragrances, will cling to the fabric.
Especially if you have sensitive skin, this can cause you problems, because synthetic fragrances are known to cause skin irritation.
Also, you might not only use one product. Maybe you also use a fabric softener. While the amounts used in each of the products are safe, if you put them together, they might not be any more.
So now that we know why swapping to earth-friendly laundry products must be part of a sustainable laundry routine, let’s look at what to look out for.
Things To Consider When Swapping To Earth-Friendly Laundry Products
Finding the eco-friendly laundry detergent that works for you can be a challenge, especially if you are unsure what to look out for.
So we have put together this guide to help you understand what makes a laundry product eco-friendly and sustainable.
Non-Toxic Chemicals
When swapping to earth-friendly laundry products, one of the main criteria to look for is that your chosen products don’t contain any toxic chemicals.
Given how much harm these harsh chemicals cause to our environment, we have to stop using them.
Here are some of the worst offenders that are used in most commonly used laundry products to stay away from:
- Fragrances and perfumes: chemicals that are used to give scent to laundry are particularly bad for our environment. The exact chemicals used won’t be on the label, as these are classed as trade secrets. LOOK OUT FOR: either products that don’t contain any fragrances or perfumes, or natural fragrances, mostly essential oils. Especially if you have sensitive skin, as many commonly used synthetic fragrances can cause skin irritation.
- Per- and Polyfluoroalkyl Substances (PFSAs): these chemicals are also called “forever chemicals” because they persist in the environment practically forever. They are very damaging to our environment. It is unlikely that they are mentioned on any label though. LOOK OUT FOR: products that only use naturally derived or plant-based ingredients.
- Dyes: Many laundry products, especially liquid detergents, have different colours, which have been achieved by adding dyes. They aren’t necessary to clean your clothes; they just make the product look nicer. Most commonly used dyes are harmful for our environment because they are synthetic chemicals made from fossil fuels. LOOK OUT FOR: products that don’t use dyes or, if they do, ones that have been naturally derived or are plant-based.
- Chlorine Bleach: bleach is well known for its cleaning power, but equally for its negative impact on our environment and human health. LOOK OUT FOR: products that don’t contain bleach, or look for ones that contain oxygen bleach, which is a biodegradable and gentler alternative to chlorine bleach.
- Optical Brighteners: these are chemicals that reflect light, which make your whites appear whiter and are used in laundry products for whites. They don’t actually make them whiter. Optical brighteners are known to be toxic to aquatic life. LOOK OUT FOR: products that don’t use optical brighteners.
- Plastic: many conventional laundry products contain microplastics or liquid polymers. While the latter isn’t actually classed as plastic, due to its liquid state, like microplastics, liquid polymers aren’t biodegradable. This means they will persist in our environment for a long time causing harm. They are mostly added to bulk out a product or make it look milkier. LOOK OUT FOR: products that clearly state that they don’t contain any plastic, solid or liquid.
Cleaning products, including laundry products, don’t have to include an ingredient list on the label. This means that what you see on the label might not be all that is in a product.
If unsure, check the company website for more information on what ingredients they use. Truly eco-friendly brands will be transparent about what ingredients they use and how they have been derived.
Come across a product that claims to be eco-friendly, natural or sustainable, but you can’t find any information about the ingredients used on the company website? Stay away, it is likely this company is greenwashing.
Sometimes swapping to earth-friendly laundry products feels like you need a degree in chemistry, right? The ingredients on labels are often impossible to pronounce, let alone understand.
But don’t let that put you off: true eco-friendly brands will make it easy for you, by giving you as much information as possible.
This makes it easy to find laundry products that won’t cause harm to our planet or you and your family.
Top-Rated Eco-Friendly Laundry Detergents Without Toxic Chemicals
| Cleaning Products | Value For Money | Effectiveness | Sustainability | My Rating | Full Review | Official Website |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 | Excellent | Excellent | Outstanding | 4.90/5 | Read Review | Visit Website |
 | Outstanding | Excellent | Excellent | 4.90/5 | Read Review | Visit Website |
 | Great | Outstanding | Excellent | 4.85/5 | Read Review | Visit Website |
Plant-Based Chemicals
As we have already seen, most chemicals used in conventional laundry products are made from petroleum, which means fossil fuels.
The use of fossil fuels is one of the major contributors to climate change, so it is vital that we look for alternatives that won’t impact on the planet.
Not all, but many petrochemicals aren’t biodegradable, which means they stay in the environment for a long time. Given how harmful to the planet they are, that is bad news.
Look out for products that use ingredients that are plant-based. This doesn’t necessarily mean they can’t be synthetic.
But it’s important that any ingredients used in a product have been made using plant-based materials rather than petroleum.
Eco-friendly companies will tell you on their website how the ingredients they use have been derived. If they don’t, they are probably not as eco-friendly as they pretend to be.
Sustainable Packaging
Most conventional laundry products you can buy come in plastic packaging: liquid laundry detergents, fabric softeners, laundry pods (although this is changing) and scent boosters.
While some of these are recyclable, they are made with so-called virgin plastic, at least partly. This means newly made plastic.
Because 90% of all plastic that is produced is made from fossil fuels, this has a huge impact on our environment.
Especially for liquids, plastic is a great material, but we can’t keep producing more and more plastic every year, as we are at the moment.
Even if the plastic bottles are recyclable, it’s not the solution. Did you know that you can only recycle plastic maybe 2 to 3 times? So this won’t help us reduce the amount of plastic we produce.
One solution is refillable pouches/containers or refill stations. There are UK-based brands that offer just that. You buy a reusable bottle and refills.
Once your refill container is empty, you send it back to them and they clean and refill it. Some also have refill stations, where you can go to top up your reusable bottles.
Although the packaging isn’t plastic-free, because the container or pouches are refilled, there is no plastic waste and that’s great.
Products In Concentrated Form
While laundry products that use non-toxic, plant-based ingredients and eco-friendly packaging are already great, you could go a step further.
Products in concentrated form tend to be more eco-friendly because they don’t contain water. This means they are lighter and take up less space when being transported. As a result, they use less energy and have a lower carbon footprint.
Often, buying concentrated products is also cheaper, which is always a great bonus.
Less Is More
There are many different laundry products out there, including detergents, fabric conditioners/softeners, stain removers and laundry pearls/scent boosters.
When swapping to earth-friendly laundry products, ask yourself: do I need all these different products?
An eco-friendly laundry detergent is a must; after all, that’s what cleans your clothes. But do you really need scent boosters?
One of the easiest ways to get rid of plastic packaging and nasty chemicals is by using fewer products.
Laundry pearls or scent boosters contain synthetic fragrances that are bad for you and our environment. We think we need them, because the companies who sell them tell us so.
Through adverts we have been conditioned to believe that only lovely smelling laundry is clean. In fact, clean doesn’t smell at all.
Of course, this is a question of preference and I get it if you want your clothes to smell nice. The good news is, there is a better way: use natural fragrances.
A few drops of essential oil added to your washing will add a lovely scent without harming the environment.
Fabric softeners are another of these laundry products we have learned to need through advertising. But did you know that the chemicals used in most conventional fabric conditioners are toxic to aquatic life?
They are also made from fossil fuels and aren’t biodegradable, remaining in our environment for a long time.
Again, it’s a question of preference. If you think you need fabric softener, why not try adding white vinegar? It has the same effect without causing harm to our planet.
Stain removers are super useful, because we want our laundry to be clean, which means without stains.
The problem is that conventional stain removers contain harmful chemicals. The good news is there are so many natural substances for stain removal out there that won’t harm the environment.
And they are also much cheaper than the chemical-laden ones you can buy.
White vinegar and bicarbonate of soda (or baking soda) are my favourites, because not only do they remove stains, they also get rid of odours.
My go-to natural stain remover for laundry is baking soda. I mix some of it with water to make a thick paste. This I then rub onto the stain and leave for at least 10 minutes.
I found that the tougher the stain, the longer you want to leave it. Then you just wash the garment in the washing machine and the stain is gone without using any harsh chemicals.
Lemon juice is also a good one, especially on white fabrics. Even milk and salt have stain-removing powers.
I use lemon juce on my husband’s white t-shirts. It works wonders at getting rid of the yellow sweat stains under the arms and on the collar.
As you can see, most of these you will have at home already. And white vinegar is well worth stocking up on too.
So you see, you don’t need all these products the big companies try to sell you. You can ditch harmful chemicals and plastic packaging and save money by buying less of them.
Mother nature has come up with effective, natural ways to keep our clothes clean. So why not use them?
Company’s Commitment To Sustainability
The final thing to look out for when swapping to earth-friendly laundry products is who you are buying from.
There are two things to look out for:
- Transparency: is the company transparent about their products, ingredients and how they operate? A true eco-friendly business will have policies in place that ensure their products, supply chains and business practices in general are sustainable.
- Earth-friendly range: does the company just offer an eco-friendly range or are all their products sustainable? There is no point buying an eco-friendly detergent from a company that also sells conventional products with harmful chemicals and plastic packaging.
To ensure that the products you buy are truly sustainable and eco-friendly, you have to buy from a company that has sustainability at the heart of its business. They are mostly small companies that were born from a wish to make a difference.
Great examples of such companies in the UK are: Homethings, Miniml, Bower Collective and Faith in Nature. They all put the planet before profit and sell earth-friendly laundry products, among other things.
When you go on their websites, you can read their story about how their business came to be. They are all also very clear about what’s in their products and how they operate to minimise their carbon footprint.
One thing they have all in common is that they don’t use toxic chemicals or single-use plastic in an effort to reduce their environmental impact.
If you buy from a company that is run in a sustainable way, their products will help you to live a more sustainable life. It’s that simple, really.
This also means that you should be weary of eco-ranges. These are eco-friendly product lines by big companies who also sell non-sustainable products.
They have cottoned on to the fact that many people are more conscious about their environmental impact and are even prepared to pay more for an earth-friendly product. But rather than changing their whole product line, they just add an eco-friendly range.
Cashing in on people’s wish to be more sustainable. At the same time they continue with their harmful practices. If you buy a product from an eco-range, you are giving money to businesses who don’t care about the planet, but only about their profits.
Sometimes they are quite sneaky and bring out a new brand, rather than just a range. This eco-brand is then promoted as a standalone company that is eco-friendly. But if you look who owns it, you find one of the big corporations like Unilever or Proctor and Gamble.
All these companies are doing is greenwashing. And it’s not just big companies either. If you come across a small company claiming to be sustainable or eco-friendly, check their website to find answers to the following questions:
- What ingredients do they use? How have they been derived? – if they use fragrances, are they natural fragrances?
- What packaging do they use? – do they use sustainable packaging?
- Where are their products manufactured? – do their products come from China or any other far away country?
- How are the products eco-friendly? – do they explain what makes their products eco-friendly?
- What’s their values, their mission? – do they have processes in place that reduce their carbon footprint (other than using carbon offsetting), such as a return refill system?
If you can’t really find answers to these questions, then the chances are the company is greenwashing. They try to appear green in order to make sales. Stay away from them.
Conclusion
Swapping to earth-friendly laundry products is easy, if you know what to look out for. The main thing is the right ingredients and packaging as well as the right company.
You want laundry products that don’t contain toxic chemicals that were made from fossil fuels. Look for ingredients that won’t harm the environment, are plant-based or naturally derived and biodegradable.
Eco-friendly companies will also make sure their packaging is sustainable. Plastic-free packaging or refillable containers that can be sent back to be refilled are two possible options. They will try to avoid any waste wherever possible.
Be aware of greenwashing companies, who either aren’t transparent about their ingredients, supply chain and practices. Or big corporations who sell eco-ranges while also selling harmful products.
Consider using natural substances to remove stains, soften and fragrance your laundry. These include white vinegar, lemon juice and backing soda.
If you are following these tips, you will quickly find eco-friendly laundry products that work for you, your budget and the planet.
Top-Rated Eco-Friendly Laundry Detergents
| Cleaning Products | Value For Money | Effectiveness | Sustainability | My Rating | Full Review | Official Website |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Excellent | Excellent | Outstanding | 4.90/5 | Read Review | Visit Website |
| Outstanding | Excellent | Excellent | 4.90/5 | Read Review | Visit Website |
| Great | Outstanding | Excellent | 4.85/5 | Read Review | Visit Website |
