Category: Green cleaning

This startup is cleaning up the synthetic chemicals in industrial cleaning products

Read the full story at Fast Company.

Sudoc—a winner of Fast Company’s 2022 World Changing Ideas Awards—harnesses the science of biomimicry to create safer and more sustainable options for the dirtiest tasks.

Unilever partners with Arzeda on enzymes for cleaning

Read the full story at Chemical & Engineering News.

The enzyme development start-up Arzeda has landed a partnership with the consumer goods giant Unilever to develop enzymes for household cleaning applications.

Many dish detergents and hard surface cleaners already use enzymes, which can break down soils, oils, and other grime as well as boost the performance of other ingredients. Enzymes, along with live microbes and advanced surfactants, are central to Unilever’s $1.2 billion plan to shift to 100% biobased ingredients for its cleaning products by 2030.

Unilever explores biology-based solutions for sustainable cleaning products

Read the full story at ESG Today.

Global consumer brands company Unilever announced today a new multi-year partnership with leading protein design company Arzeda, exploring biology-based solutions to transform the sustainability and performance of cleaning and laundry products.

Kilroy Realty Corporation boosts engagement with Green Janitor Education program

Read the full case study from U.S. DOE’s Better Buildings Program.

Kilroy Realty Corporation sought to find ways to engage janitorial staff in helping the company reduce energy and water consumption and increase recycling rates across its 13.2 million-square-foot commercial real estate portfolio. The solution was to participate in a Green Janitor Education Program, a joint effort by the U.S. Green Building Council Los Angeles Chapter, the Building Owners & Managers Association of Greater Los Angeles, Building Skills Partnership, and the Service Employees International Union. The program offers trainings to help janitorial staff understand the science behind green cleaning, how to identify energy and water waste in a building, and how they can play a part in improving building sustainability.

5 things businesses should know about green cleaning during the COVID-19 pandemic

Read the full story at GreenBiz.

Green cleaning experts see the hypercleaning trend as an opportunity to educate consumers and businesses about healthier alternatives to harsh disinfectants, more efficient technologies and procedures. As both companies and individuals start cleaning everything multiple times a day, they should be more concerned about what is actually in the products. 

Asthma and Chemicals: A Focus on Cleaning, Disinfection, and Sterilization

The 2020 Covid-19 pandemic has led to increased use of cleaning, disinfecting, and sterilization chemicals. Some of these chemicals can cause asthma in people with no prior history of the disease. Some can also trigger asthma attacks in individuals who already have asthma. This fact sheet provides a brief summary of the links between chemicals and asthma, and options for using safer alternatives.

List N: Disinfectants for Use Against SARS-CoV-2

EPA has developed a list of disinfectants for use against SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19. They also have a tool that allows consumer to more easily search the list.

Other resources from EPA include:

Green Cleaning: Where We’ve Been and What’s Next

Read the full story in Environmental Leader.

For more than two decades, I have been discussing the value and the reasons for green cleaning in the professional cleaning industry. While the first few years of my journey – and it certainly has been a journey – were difficult, with few people attending my seminars or presentations, I am happy to report that today “green cleaning” has become mainstream in the professional cleaning industry.

This means that facility managers and cleaning contractors only select traditional, non-green cleaning products when an environmentally preferable one is not available or is cost prohibitive. And both of those situations are diminishing over time.

Green cleaning: The journey from niche to mainstream

Read the full story in GreenBiz.

In 1962, Rachel Carson’s groundbreaking book “Silent Spring” was published. It forced the general public and members of the U.S. government to take a serious look at society’s use of chemicals and pesticides.

By the end of the decade, young people around the world took up the cause for “ecology,” as it was then called. This led to the first Earth Day in 1970, an event reflecting the much greater environmental consciousness that was spreading throughout the world.

Not long afterward, the first green cleaning products made their way onto the shelves of health food stores as the green cleaning movement began. Today, green cleaning is no longer niche, with an increasing number of certifications and other tools that have pushed it into the mainstream.

Say Yes to Green Cleaning—as Long as It Is Effective Cleaning

Read the full story at Environmental Leader.

Green cleaning has been one of the most significant developments to hit the professional cleaning industry in years. However, even longtime advocates of environmentally responsible cleaning products and systems acknowledge that all cleaning — whether green or not — must be effective in order to meet the ultimate goal of protecting human health.