Get the facts on bulk soap.
There is this hidden magical area in Marché Bleuet where you can source some kick-ass, good smelling eco-friendly soaps in bulk.
Have you seen this area?
Why bulk soaps are brilliant
We asked two of our favorite experts on all matters of bulk soaps and they gave us great answers. Check out the quick Q&A below on why bulk soap is amazing.
Philippe, from Oneka Elements
What’s so great about bulk shampoo?
It saves a lot of plastic from reusing the same bottle over and over.
Can bulk shampoo still be good quality?
Of course, if the shampoo is good in the bottle it will be good in bulk. Bulk is the vehicle to distribute the shampoo not the shampoo itself.
How much plastic do we save?
Every 20L container used to refill bottles saves 40 bottles worth of plastic.
What’s special about Oneka shampoo?
It is made from organic herbs grown at Oneka farm in Frelighsburg. It is gentle, non drying and leaves hair looking healthy. Also color safe
“Basically, bulk soap is exactly the same as regular soap, without the added costs of marketing and packaging.” – HALINA TORRESAN, FROM BALÉCO
Halina Torresan, from Baléco Ecosolutions
How much plastic do we save with bulk soap?
Bulk soap has a huge impact on our collective plastic footprint and equally our carbon footprint. Plastic is saved throughout the complete life cycle of a product from manufacturing to the end of life or re-use of the bottle. Consider the life cycle of OH bulk Dish Soap: During transport from the manufacturer to the distributor, plastic and cardboard is saved by reducing packaging materials (no cardboard boxes to put small bottles in). Bulk products also take up considerably less space during transportation, thus maximising efficiency and reducing greenhouse gas emissions. In the warehouse, bulk products also take up less storage space than do packaged ones.
Before OH bulk dish soap even hits the market, plastic and greenhouse gas emissions are reduced.
On the consumer side, bulk dish soap definitely has a visible impact on reducing plastic. Considering the average person uses approximately one bottle of 750ml of dish soap per month, bulk saves around 12 750ml plastic bottles per year. That is just for one product!
Just how good is bulk soap really?
Bulk soap is awesome!
Basically, bulk soap is exactly the same as regular soap, without the added costs of marketing and packaging. On top of that, most soap that is available in bulk is biodegradable, and contains healthier ingredients than what you can normally find in traditional supermarkets. Bulk soap also allows you to buy just the quantity you need, a huge plus for a big family or for a person living in a studio apartment.
Why bother?
It’s simple. For us, the bulk soap concept came out of deep consideration for the whole product life cycle of cleaning products. Through this perspective, packaging cannot be taken out of the equation. Refilling the same bottle over again allows consumers to have access to high quality, biodegradable local products without the hefty price tag, all while contributing to reducing our collective plastic footprint.
If reusing and refilling your bottles seems like a hassle, consider that as a small startup company in 2014, we calculated that over 26 000 were saved from landfills by refilling OH bulk cleaning products solely in the Montreal area. That is an integral part of our mission, the reduction of waste through our bulk concept. Every refill counts, and they definitely add up!
We believe that refilling and reusing bottles is the future of retail, not just for soap but for all consumer products, from olive oil to laundry detergent. Disposable bottles are so overrated! We bring our reusable bags to the market and return our empty cans and beer bottles to the market, why not our empty soap bottles?
Leave a Reply