Plastic free: Deodorant

It’s day 2 of living plastic free and my antiperspirant committed suicide this morning. As it leapt out of my hands and hurled itself towards the linoleum at warp speed I was thinking Where the frell am I gonna find a non-plastic substitute…how absolutely plebeian that anti-perspirant is going to be the first thing I’ll be blogging about…I wonder if there will be any leftover Xmas chocolate at work today….(sometimes my brain travels at warp speed too).

Fortunately, the SharWoman and I were Starbucking this weekend and discussing my imminent adventure into no-plastic land. Shampoo came up in conversation….and the name LUSH as a potential source.

Now I’m a LUSH virgin – always been a BodyShopWoman. Body Shop catered to my cruelty-free lifestyle long before anyone else. They get my loyalty for that. And ya gotta admire the guts, maverick-ness, and vision of Anita Roddick, it’s founder.

The Body Shop had a fabulous antiperspirant which I faithfully purchased (in bulk, as it was often sold out) for many years, until they removed it from their product line in 2006. Go figure. (It’s the EnviroWoman curse, products I LOVE get summarily dumped…Watch out Pepsi, your days could be numbered). Admittedly, even if it were still alive today, Body Shop's antiperspirant would be a SINNER in today's no-plastic land.

So today I ventured into LUSH land. They had 3 types of deodorants (impressive), two which were SAINTS, and one that was a SINNER. All cruelty-free. I tell ya, I nearly yelled BINGO. Containing myself, I chose the paper-wrapped Teo. Alas, looks like the label used for pricing may be plastic-based (a MINOR SIN). I’ll have to do some research on that.

Gotta love the LUSH. Making my first foray into no-plastic land a success. Of course, I have yet to test-drive Teo and see if it’s worth EnviroWoman’s allegiance. But for now here’s how things add up…

Category: Deodorant
SAINT: Teo by LUSH
Convenience: 10/10
Price: $7.95 CAN$
Comparable
Quality: TBD
SINNER:Dove, Ultimate Clear Cool Essentials

Jan 5 07 Followup:

Letter to Dove

To the good folks at Dove. Your Campaign for Real Beauty was great. Good enough, that when The Body Shop stopped producing its awesome deodorant (which I had been loyal to for years) I thought 'here's an opportunity for me to give Dove some of my business'. I tried your Dove Ultimate Clear Cool Essentials Antiperspirant and it definitely did the trick. Smelled good too.

Today, my Dove deodorant decided to commit suicide by leaping out of my hands and hurling itself towards the bathroom linoleum at warp speed. It met its demise.

Normally, I'd buy more of any product I was happy with. But in 2007, to reduce my environmental footprint, I've made a New Year's resolution not to purchase any products that are made of plastic or are packaged in plastic. So, my relationship with Dove deodorant has come to an end.

You've lost me to LUSH, who produces not only a plastic-free deodorant but also one that is cruelty-free with minimal paper packaging.

Today the cause du jour is global warming (as it should be) but it's just one symptom of mankind's disregard for the planet and of our irresponsible consumption and production. We have no right to pollute our planet with garbage that does not biodegrade.

Consumer demand is a powerful force. This consumer demands earth-friendly, cruelty-free products. Please let me know your progress on these fronts.

DOVES Response:

Thanks so much for writing!

We do apologize for your frustration with our packaging. The packaging staff designs the packages and containers to meet needs of both the product and the consumer for safety and convenience. Packages are regularly reevaluated, based on consumer commentary and preferences as well as business considerations.

We will certainly report your comments to the packaging staff. It is possible that the container for that product will change at some time in the future.

Thank you for your interest!

Your friends at Dove