(If you’re not familiar with the devastating effects the palm oil industry is having on our environment and the people and organisms within it, we’ve posted the basics here, how to quit it here, an AP investigation here.This very dated article is also a good start if you’re new to the issue and its effects on threatened and endangered animals.)

I know that a lot of other common body care ingredients can have detrimental effects on our planet, but I think avoiding palm oil is really the best place you could start, especially if you’re new to natural beauty. And it just so happened that the biodegradable soap brands I’ve listed below are all women-owned, making soaps in small batches that are free of lots of other questionable ingredients you’ll find in more conventional products. And the packaging on these beauties? Yup, 10000% eco club approved:

TERRA-TORY is an NY based all-natural soap company touting 100% Natural 0% Bullsh*t Skincare. This is a very rare company that is both palm and coconut oil free… Learn more on their website.

Vegan + eco friendly soap from Smithmade Essentials are fun & fragrant artisan soaps handmade in small batches in New Haven, CT. On their site you can find the full details about each ingredient used.

No Tox Life has their own line of body cleansing bars wrapped in recycled paper for shipping. Be sure to grab their famous dish wash block and deodorant while you’re there!

BHAVANANYC makes all-natural, vegan sea salt soap bars using luxe natural ingredients like activated charcoal and Rose Kaolin Clay.

Bell Mountain Naturals are makers of natural small batch soaps that are super cute, and always palm free. You might be familiar with their gem design!

UK vegan soap-on-a-rope brand KLEEN cures their all-natural soaps for a minimum of 6 weeks and uses only skin-friendly, eco-friendly ingredients that are free of palm oil, parabens, and toxins. Not to mention, their packaging and branding is totally gift-worthy.

Another handmade soap brand, Unearth Malee specializes in palm oil free Thai-inspired soaps, lotions, lip balms, and even solid dish soap! To further raise awareness of the devastating effects of palm oil, the brand donates a portion of sales to help save the endangered orangutan. Learn more in founder Marie’s Etsy shop!

Naked & Thriving is a sister and brother founded skincare brand that offers products free of over 2500 potentially harmful ingredients, environmentally-friendly (free of palm oil of course), and with many organic ingredients for a truly natural clean. They have a full line of skincare, from cleansing bars to oils to

Founded in 2019, Rustic Glory Soap Co offers both scented and unscented palm oil free soap bars infused with nourishing essential oils and botanicals. And they are just the prettiest bars to place on your bathroom counters!

Latina woman owned soap brand Nopalera harnesses the power of Native Mexican Prickly pear cactus along with healing plant oils for nourishing soaps, moisturizers and creams.

The brands above also feature sustainable packaging, making truly biodegradable soap for us all to enjoy… sans palm oil.

On the hunt for more zero waste body and skincare products? Check out these brands!

We are always looking for beautiful, natural, quality skincare and body brands to add to our lists. If you know of another palm oil free bar soap brand, let us know below!

The post Back to Basics: 10 Natural, Women Owned, Palm-Oil Free Bar Soap Brands appeared first on Eco Club.

Why activated charcoal toothpaste + biodegradable floss?

Tell us a bit about you and Amra…
Amra and I always wanted to start a business that pays it forward. Growing up during the war in Bosnia, we had so many people and organizations help us during those terrible years. Postwar we moved to the US, got an education and both worked in the beauty business for over a decade. We never thought that oral care would be something we’d get into. A few years ago, while Amra was pregnant, she used only natural products and limited products filled with chemicals. That’s how she found activated charcoal powder and saw her teeth whiten, but it was a super messy process. She thought about how there should be toothpaste that contains activated charcoal but has no fluoride and fillers. Just simple organic ingredients like coconut oils and peppermint essential oils. She called me and we started looking for manufacturing here in the USA.

We were not sure how people would react to black toothpaste, but almost three years later, we have a brand that is sitting on shelves at Anthropologie, Saks, Free People, and eco-friendly hotels.

Now that we have created a successful brand and have the power to help others, each month we donate oral products to the Downtown Women’s Shelter in Los Angeles to help low income and homeless women. Amra and I have been personally visiting the center and working with them. One of the wishlist items in almost every shelter is toothpaste. We hope as our business grow to help out more shelters in our communities. Terra & Co plans to start a fund where the percentage of each sale will go towards helping low income and homeless women.

How did your combined experience in the cosmetics industry help set you up for a business in natural oral care?
I’ve lived and worked in NYC as a makeup artist and beauty creative for over a decade. Amra managed few beauty startups in LA so her business side and my creative side were proven to be a good fit to get a business idea to a working business.

What was your biggest challenge in creating all-natural, zero waste oral care products?
We both believe that the future of consumer products have to be created with the least impact on mother earth. The biggest challenge is finding biodegradable packaging and lowering our carbon footprint. After attending a few packaging trade shows I find a limited number of suppliers who focus on eco-friendly and biodegradable packaging, to my surprise. Especially because we want all of our products to be made in USA.

Can you talk about the differences between conventional dental floss and Brilliant Black?
Conventional dental floss is usually made out of strands of nylon or Teflon with added wax and flavors. Neither of these polymers is biodegradable, and not to even talk about plastic packaging that flosses come in. Brilliant Black floss is made with bamboo fiber, activated charcoal (why not whiten between teeth?) coconut oil, candelilla wax (vegan wax) and peppermint and spearmint essential oils. All of these ingredients are biodegradable including our carton box that floss comes in.

Tell us more about the packaging you use for your products.
From day one we have focused to not only make chemical-free products that work but to minimize packaging as much as we can as a small business. Our bamboo toothbrush used to come in a plastic travel case and now we have switched to box made out of the biodegradable carton and printed with eco-friendly ink in California. We have been working and testing new tubes made out of sugar canes that will be a great replacement for recycled plastic.

What are a few of you and Amra’s fave sustainable beauty/skincare brands? 
There are so many brands that we both love. Few of the favorites are: Dr. Hauschka, ILIA Beauty, Immunocologie, Noniko Natural Skincare, Jane Iredale…

Thanks to Azra of Terra & Co for sharing their story. Purchase eco friendly dental floss and other oral care products on their website.

Photos by Taylor Lewis

The post Eco Friendly Dental Floss Should Be Your Next Zero Waste Purchase appeared first on Eco Club.