Easy Eco-Friendly Swaps: Our Sustainable Must Haves

It’s never been easier to swap to sustainable eco-friendly choices than it is now. In a world that’s drowning from plastics it’s vital that we grab any chance we get to alter our lives for the better. Making eco swaps is a great way to look after our health and the planets health but focusing on eco-friendly swaps we can use every day is really where we can make a big difference.

With that being said, here are a few of our favourite sustainable swaps that are a super easy way to help you support the planet:

1. S’wheat Bottle:

Water is one of the most important elements making up over 70% of our bodies. Without an adequate water intake, we can feel fatigued, lightheaded and various other unpleasant symptoms (heathline, 2021). Drinking enough water is important to keep your body functioning correctly, your body needs significantly more water when you’re in warmer climates or are physically active. So, you’re going to need a reusable water bottle that will last you.

Our go-to bottle is the S’wheat Bottle. The S’wheat bottle is the world’s first plant-based reusable water bottle, made from bamboo and wheatstraw. It’s sustainably made and will keep your drinks tasting just as fresh as when you first poured them. Its also suitable for both hot and cold drinks which is great for when it gets cooler in the evenings. The bottle is naturally antibacterial thanks to it being made with bamboo. Bamboo fiber contains antibacterial properties that help prevent the growth of bacteria, which can be extremely helpful feature to have in your reusable water bottle, especially in the hot summer months.

Now is a great time to ditch your old plastic, steel or glass bottle and swap to a healthier more sustainable alternative. For every bottle sold they’ll also plant your very own tree in your name and take plastics out of the ocean.

You can get your S’wheat bottle here: www.swheatbottle.com. Use code: HEALTHY at checkout for £5 off your order

2. Pantee

Here at Pantee, we upcycle deadstock fabrics into the comfiest underwear sets.

We started by upcycling unworn and discarded t-shirts that would otherwise have ended up in landfill into super soft and sustainable bras and briefs, but we now use a range of deadstock fabrics when bringing Pantees to life. Why T-shirts? The manufacturing process of a regular cotton t-shirt it uses over 2,700 liters of water, which is enough water to last one person more than 900 days! On top of that, approximately 30% of all clothes made are never even sold. 

3. Bamboo cutlery 

Do you often eat lunch on the go? If so, you’ll need a reliable cutlery set and I don’t mean plastic. Every year there are over 6 million tonnes of disposable plastics (unep, 2020) such as disposable cutlery that ends up in our oceans. Plastic cutlery has been listed as one of the more hazardous types of ocean plastic. An easy sustainable swap that you can make is trying Bamboo cutlery. 

Bamboo cutlery is naturally biodegradable and wont damage the environment. It can naturally biodegrade in as little as 30 days which is a lot better than plastic cutlery taking upwards of 500+ years. Being made from Bamboo their durable and can last you a while before needing another set. Bamboo is a great choice as it keeps up with the same rate of consumptions as humans. Bamboo grows to full maturity within 3-5 years and can grow to be as tall as 30 meters. Bamboo cutlery is lightweight, easy to carry and durable making it a super easy eco-friendly swap.

4. Reusable food wraps

It is estimated that 1.2 billion meters of clingfilm (plastic wrap) (telegraph, 2011) is used in Britain each year, that’s enough to wrap around the earth over 30 times! Similarly, to plastic bags clingfilm that ends up in the oceans can be mistaken as jellyfish by turtles causing havoc among sea life.

An easy way to ditch plastic is by using reusable food wraps, these wraps are typically made from bees wax and can be used as a good alternative for clingfilm However, it’s important to note that these aren’t vegan friendly. Another great alternative is using glass containers to store your left over food.

5. Swap out plastic bags

Bring your own reusable shopping bag when you’re on the go. Plastics bags have an average use of only 20 minutes, and they take hundreds of years to biodegrade (biologicaldiversity.org, 2018) Plastic bags are also made from limited resources such as oil. 

Although plastic bags are recyclable, only a very limited number of people ever get around to recycling their plastic bags. Many cities no longer offer any way of recycling typical plastic bags due to them being stuck in machinery or blowing away when placed in curb side recycling bins. These plastic bags pollute our oceans and damage many wildlife habitats. A cheap and easy swap you could make today is switching to a reusable bag.

Do you have any more sustainable must haves you want to see on the list? What eco-friendly swaps have you made recently? We would love to hear them. Let us know in the comments below!

This article was written for Pantee by S’wheat the world’s first plant-based bottle. S’wheat is on a mission to reduce reusable bottle waste and single use plastic. For each bottle sold S’wheat plants a tree and remove plastic from the ocean.