If you’re like me, you’ve often wondered why cleaning products are not required to list their ingredients.
I’ve always been concerned that there is no government agency responsible for overseeing what ingredients are used in our household cleaning products. The excuse (my opinion!) is that since cleaning products aren’t food, beverages or drugs meant to be ingested, they aren’t regulated by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.
Manufacturers are, however, required by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to list ingredients that are active disinfectants or potentially harmful. Manufacturers claim that they keep their other ingredients secret so competitors can’t duplicate their formulas. Well, if there was some great secret, why are there so many competing products with identical ingredients?
Manufacturers are only required to list ‘chemicals of known concern’ on their labels. In reality, the government has no idea whether most of the chemicals used in everyday cleaning products are safe or not because it doesn’t test them, and it doesn’t require manufacturers to test them.
EPA, under the terms of 1976’s Toxic Substances Control Act, cannot require chemical companies to prove the safety of their products unless the agency itself can show that the product poses a health risk-which the EPA does not have the resources to do since it receives over two thousand new applications for approval every year. Environmental Working Group (ewg.org), found that the EPA approved most applications within three weeks even though more than half provided no information on toxicity.
It’s up to consumers (US!) to study what the warning labels on household cleaners really mean. All household cleaners that contain known hazardous chemicals must carry a warning label that spells out potential risks, along with precautionary steps and first-aid instructions. If a label advises you to keep it away from children, you probably want to keep it away from yourself and your pets as well.

Michael Pollan, in his wonderful little book “Food Rules: An Eater’s Manual” says, “Avoid foods containing ingredients that no ordinary human being would keep in the pantry.” I would amend that advice to include avoiding cleaning products that contain ingredients that the average person would not keep in the house. I mean, do you keep sodium laurel sulfate (the chemical that causes suddsing) under your sink?

Life was once less chemically drenched. It can be that way again…at least in your home. Read the label, think, and make a smart choice.

Peace,
Diann

We’ve been asked questions lately about why our Go Green Dog Shampoo has been formulated as a non sudsing formula so we’re thinking now would be a good time to address this issue. There seems to be a lot of confusion surrounding soap suds . Most of us are so conditioned to equate suds with clean that we truly believe it is those suds that are getting the job done. Not so!
Suds don’t do anything except “prove” to the consumer that the product is a cleaner. There is some natural sudsing (mostly from agitation in water) but it isn’t the key ingredient at all. Lather in shampoos and soaps is thought to be luxurious, and bubbles do feel nice as they go through our hands, so often times lathering agents are excessively added to these products.

As you have noticed, laundry soaps and such do not lather as much because they would be very messy and hard to rinse. These are the products that prove that bubbles aren’t necessary for cleaning power. Actually most machine cleaners (dishwasher detergent, laundry detergent, carpet cleaning detergent) are all very low sudsing. WHY? because the machine isn’t impressed at all by luxurious lather.

The ironic thing about the lathering agents used in cosmetic products like body wash and shampoois that these are the very same ingredients that help make a product hard on the environment, and often these are the ingredients that dry out your skin (and your dog’s skin as well)…and they are unnecessary.
Sudsing results when phosphates are added to the detergent, serving absolutely no purpose whatsoever. In the olden days, when detergent was actually “soap”, suds proved that the detergent was working. Detergents nowadays are actually enzyme-based. Enzymes do NOT cause suds.

So to answer “Do we need suds to clean effectively?” NO!!. Suds serve absolutely no purpose except to add one more pollutant to our waterways. High efficiency detergents have NO phosphates and will NOT suds, or pollute.

Hope this clarifies why Go Green Dog Shampoo doesn’t suds and yet gets your furry friend silky clean!

Here’s to happy healthy pet washing!!!

We are so amazed and delighted every time our customers discover a new use for our great products! The first time Vanessa told us she used our glass and surface cleaner Arctic Blast to eliminate ants where they weren’t wanted, we ran home and tried it…SUCCESS!! Now we tell everyone. And we’re excited to pass along that ticks seem to curl up and die when sprayed. We’ll be doing more research on this, but initial results are very encouraging! We’ll keep you posted!

And when people discovered that they dusted less frequently after using Furniture Frappe, we felt validated since we’d noticed that phenomena ourselves. And the Peppermint Power! Egad, the uses just rolled in, from laundry use to brighten a cold water load to vacuum cleaner bag freshener when sprinkled on carpet and vacuumed up. And just the other day, a friend told me that her teenaged son sprinkles Peppermint Power in his athletic shoes to keep odors away. Now I can pass along what one of my garden friends told me about our hand sanitizer/sports spray Paavana, that he just sprays it inside his work boots and his socks, feet and shoes are real happy campers. (So’s his wife!)

Our Go Green Dog Shampoo is not only great for our 4-legged canine companions, but is great as a body wash for us home sapiens as well. (Karl told us about this and we both tried it and it’s very effective!) Just don’t use it on cats, they don’t like essential oils. But if your cat is leaving his signature where you’d prefer he didn’t, just spray the area with Go Green Dog Crate Spray–no more spraying there! And Crate Spray makes a wonderful room freshener if you have rain wet pooches (or kids)!

And since we’re discussing room sprays, our Dharma scents not only freshen stale air and eliminate unwanted odors, it’s amazing when you use them as linen sprays. Our friend Phil irons with Monsoon and every time he opens his closet door, its rain in the desert! Fresh and cool. I spray Asana on my pillow for sweet dreams.

Here’s where you come in!We would love it if you’d share with us how you use our products. What have you discovered about Herb’n Organics?? Send us a Tweet, post on Facebook, or send us an email. Or, comment here. You are so much a part of why we do what we do and we’d love to hear from you!

There are lots of really exciting things coming up in 2011, new looks, new ideas, new products! Our favorite yogis tell us that this year truly is the dawning of the Age of Aquarius! And we could use a peaceful new age.

Peace,
Diann

As the days grow shorter, building to winter solstice, I have always found it rewarding and comforting to reflect on all the amazing events of the year passing and focus my attention on those things that I am grateful for. I downloaded the “Gratitude”application from iTunes and have been keeping a somewhat sporadic record of things I am grateful for. As the holidays rapidly approach I reflect on the following:

Gratitude for my health and for the love of my life, Denis Leclerc. I am grateful for our wonderful home nestled into a now golden yellow orchard garden environment. I’m sitting outside in 80 degree weather writing beneath our old mulberry tree that casts an enchanted glow on my work. It’s such a gift to be tuned into a tree that I have lived beneath for over 20 years, watching him change from season to season. Newcomers to the desert say there are no seasons in Arizona, but they manifest in ways often subtle and quickly passing. I am grateful for a life that allows me the time to observe these changes.

Gratitude for my burgeoning urban farm with fruit trees, herb spirals and 3 happy hens that make our breakfast. We often share our eggs with the neighbors and now 5 more homes on the street have chickens. It’s been really rewarding to pass along what I’ve learned about sustainable living and desert gardening to groups of ASU students, Phoenix Permaculture Guild members and Herb’n Organics customers.

Gratitude for the growth of Herb’n Organics and the wonderful community of customers who have supported us the past 2 plus years. Candice and I started with a commitment to ourselves to bring the amazing products she developed to market in a sustainable manner. It hasn’t been easy, there’ve been myriad challenges along the way, but through a down economy and against the odds, we’re still here…and we’re growing! And we wouldn’t breathing so easily without the incredible support of the Go Green Deliveries family! We are deeply grateful for Mary, Christy, and Randy for having our backs.

We have been truly blessed in having an amazing team of talented individuals who believe in us and have contributed significantly to our creation, survival and growth:
Tim Wong for his amazing graphic skills and youthful sense of wonder,
Mark Ahn, longtime friend and videographer-photographer extraordinaire,
Ryan Wood for website management and reassuring conversations,
Jackie Ince for design and printing oversight above and beyond the call of duty,
And Sharon Kreiger for her creative marketing concepts and her unwavering commitment to our success.

Thanks to all in our community who are working diligently towards a sustainable bright ‘green’ future, supporting local businesses and investing in their neighbors!

Peace at all and to all a Happy New Year!
Diann

Emma has a good life! She’s a print media personality (that’s her little face on our Go Green Dog products), has her own custom made circular bed (Karl from UKDK gave her this creation) and 2 large playmates, both herders, who romp with her.
She goes on walks, loves her dinner and sleeps with two humans who adore her. She has her forever home. She’s a rescue girl whom we adopted last December.

Other dogs have not been so fortunate. They’ve lost their homes and desperately need to find another. Some dogs were rescued from foreclosed homes-abandoned along with the house by their people. Some dogs didn’t fit into what they hoped would be their home and some dogs are special needs dogs who still hope for that forever home.

We are proud to be supporting the Arizona Humane Society and Lost our Home Rescue at the Phoenix Downtown Public Market on Saturday November 20th from 9 til 1 at a very special event. Bring a can of dog food, a bag of dog food, blankets, towels..supplies that these 2 wonderful organizations can use to help maintain the burgeoning population of displaced dogs in their facilities. When you contribute, HERB’N ORGANICS WILL GIVE YOU A COLORFUL HOLIDAY BOTTLE OF GO GREEN DOG SHAMPOO as our way of thanking you for your help.

Emma will be with us, Karl Barton of UKDK will have his fabulous dog treats and there’ll be some wonderful dogs waiting to say ‘hello’ and ‘thank you’! We’ll be looking for you.
Peace-and hope,
Diann

Do you shop at your local farmers market? Do you love the feeling of community you get when you’re there? Ever thought about running your own market booth and being a part of the fastest growing movement in the country? Well, have we got an idea for you:
If you’d like to represent Herb’n Organics at a farm market near you, we’d love to talk with you. We will supply you with a tent, table, table cloths, banner, and our fabulous products to sell. We’ll pass along everything we’ve learned about participating in a vital and dynamic environment and we’ll be the wind beneath your wings as you start your own business.
Are you interested in talking further?? Please contact us via info@herbnorganics.com. We’d love to hear from you.
Peace,
Diann

Green Up for the Holidays!

Here come the holidays! Here comes another opportunity to apply a deeper shade of green to your festivities.

I’m a big fan of creative wrapping! My first job in high school was wrapping customers’ presents during the holiday season at the small town department store where my dad worked. I loved it. I still do.
Now I haunt the dollar stores for wonderful dish towels to wrap my gifts in, along with cotton ribbon for tying a big bow. I also recycle calendars into wrapping paper-even the month pages. And magazine advertisements-bright and colorful-make wonderful wraps for small gifts. If I have the time, I often use the black and white daily newspaper pages and add designs with my rubber stamp collection. With bright ink, a marvelous one-of-a-kind design is easily created. And you know, people really love the uniqueness-they love it that you took the time to do an individual wrap creation instead of just cutting off a length of paper. Express your wonderful green self, add fresh foliage such as rosemary that can be used even if it dries out.

Here are some additional tips to make your holiday season lighter on the planet:
• Tell store clerks you don’t need a bag for small or oversized purchases. 

• Wrap gifts in recycled or reused wrapping paper or funny papers. (Remember to save or recycle your used wrapping paper.)
• Give gifts that don’t require much packaging, such as concert tickets or gift certificates. 

• Send recycled-content greeting cards to reduce the amount of virgin paper used during the holidays. (Remember to recycle any paper cards you receive.)
• Even better, try sending electronic greeting cards to reduce paper waste. 


• When buying gifts, check product labels to determine an item’s recyclability and whether it is made from recycled materials. Buying recycled encourages manufacturers to make more recycled-content products available. 


We’d love it if you told us how you ‘greened’ your holiday season. Comment on our blog.

Happy, happy, merry merry to all!
Peace,
Diann

Add Green To Your Halloween!

It’s easy to create a healthy holiday for your family and the environment. Just follow these simple steps to add healthy green to your Halloween tradition.

1. Pick play makeup carefully. Children love to wear colorful cosmetics as part of their costumes. Just make sure they’re using safer products and applying them as directed. Visit cosmeticsdatabase.com to look up your products and find safer ones.
Avoid :
Face paints and lipsticks that contain lead, which can impair brain development at extremely low doses, as well as nickel, cobalt and chromium, which can cause skin sensitization and contact dermatitis. Kids tend to eat almost as much as they put on their lips, so avoid lipstick all together. Choose a shiny, beeswax-based lip balm.
Nail polish frequently contains dibutyl phthalate and toluene, chemicals linked to hormone disruption and cancer. Skip it.
Cosmetics in powder form can easily be inhaled. Depending on the particle size, the powder can lodge in children’s nasal passages and even lungs — where it may cause damage.
Fragrances Read the ingredient labels and avoid products listing “fragrance” – the Environmental Working Group research found that fragrances may contain allergens or hormone-disrupting chemicals.

2. Don’t use (colored) hairspray. Many hairsprays contain toxic chemicals and fragrance. Kids can easily breathe in sprays. Instead, find a great hat or wig at a second-hand store; or create a great hair-do with ribbons and barrettes.

3. Don’t let kids wear synthetic facemasks or teeth. Masks and fake teeth are made from a variety of synthetic materials that aren’t always labeled. Plastics may be softened with endocrine-disrupting phthalates. Rather than covering your head with unknown, possibly toxic materials, make your own mask from simple materials or try a half-face, masquerade-style mask instead

4. Healthy Treats Offer treats that you would like your kids to receive. Hand out items that have fewer, more natural ingredients. Try organic chocolate bars from Trader Joes or Whole Foods, and Newman’s Own peanut butter cups, caramel cups, or peppermint patties. Endangered Species Bug Bites have been a hit with the younger kids – bite size chocolate with trading cards.

5. Decorate naturally. Pick up pumpkins, gourds (grocery stores) and hay bales ( local farm or feed and tack store) to create a haunting scene and reuse decorations from year to year.

My heartfelt thanks as always to Environmental Working Group for all the fine work they do!
Diann

Yay! We did it! As all of you know by now who buy our products we don’t like to ship water! it’s very important to us here at HNO to stay on mission with our products and and not shipping water is one important way we do this. Because the shipping of water has such a negative effect on the environment and everyone has their own water available to add themselves we quickly formulated Arctic Blast and Oh so…Orange Furniture Frappe into a concentrated just add water formulation. Not only has this been better for the environment it also saves money in shipping and is easier on the back as well! I have recently been working on new just add water formulas for our Go Green Dog line of Shampoo and Crate spray and I am happy to announce we now have these formulas ready to go! So now you will be seeing the red just add water sticker on these products as well! It does feel good to be on mission! So here’s to happy healthy dog washing and crate freshening to you all! xxx-Candice

We are so lucky! So many good things have happened for us as we’ve been growing Herb’n Organics. The latest gift has been the involvement of Ms. Brett Pedley, a senior at ASU in the School of Sustainability.
We first met when her class came to Wilson Gardens, where we’re located, to sit under the big old mulberry on the deck and talk about urban gardening–growing food in a urban setting. A few days later, Brett called and asked about doing an internship with us over the summer. Her timing was incredible because we were just starting the process of getting Green Certification from Green America-a huge undertaking. Perhaps the most daunting component is the research involving interviewing all our suppliers to determine their level of commitment to sustainable operation. When we suggested that Brett take on that project for her internship, she loved it! And so did her internship director.
The internship program requires that she blog weekly to share her thought, challenges and progress. We’ve been reading her postings and she’s agreed to share them with our readers. She writes very well and asks the right questions. W e though you might enjoy following her progress as well.
Check out her blog at: locallifecycle.wordpress.com
Enjoy,
Diann