Eco-Friendly Paper

I was in Staples on the weekend and discovered a new eco-friendly product. They are selling notebooks (see above) made from sugarcane-based waste. The inside of the notebook cover says:

The pages you're holding were made with 80% bagasse. What's bagasse? It's the name for the plant fiber waste remaining after sugarcane is processed and crushed to make sugar. The quality is just as good as traditional tree-based paper, and it's great for the environment.

The process of incorporating bagasse into eco-friendly Staples paper products is an innovative, forest-friendly approach. It means fewer trees are cut down, while maximizing the use of all parts of a rapidly renewable agricultural product like sugarcane.

Along with tree-friendly paper, we also use eco-conscious vegetable- and water-based inks for the printing process.

Along with sugarcane-based paper, we offer more than 2,000 products made from recycled paper. The environmental impact? Each year, our sales of recycled-content paper products save more than 1.6 million trees. That's 5,000 acres of forest.

There is a double-sided page that holds notes, etc. for extra convenience. The notebook contains 100 pages. They look, feel, and perform just like tree-based paper pages.



I also became aware of their printer cartridge recycling program. In Canada (at least - probably elsewhere as well), they request that you return your empty cartridges to their stores. You will receive no money; but, you will receive a warm, fuzzy feeling that feels better than greed any day. They recycle those cartridges for $1.00 each; and, donate the money to schools requiring supplies, computers, and other learning musts.

Not many of us can afford to give back in a big way; but, we can afford to give back in small ways many times over. Try the paper - you'll like it AND you'll save a tree!