What does the word Ecolabel represent?

The Ecolabel is THE European label. For cleaning and cosmetics products, it is awarded to products that demonstrate a better respect of the individual and the environment, while being as efficient and effective as traditional market leaders, for a similar purpose. The official label is common to all countries of the European Union. Currently more than fifty types of products can be qualified to be awarded.

Validation

The compositions and performances of European Ecolabel products are validated by an official and independent organism. Validated products must bear the "little flower" logo, the European Ecolabel, and a validation number awarded by the official organism. For further information, please see the "Ecolabel" section on our site www.arbrevert.fr or www.ecolabels.fr

What is the difference between L’Arbre Vert and the others ecological brands ?

Drawn beyond the criteria of the European Ecolabel, a L’Arbre Vert ecological product must minimize its impact on the environment with greater respect for the person.

Advantages of L’Arbre Vert:

• The majority of cleaners and other ingredients are of plant origin (the feedstock comes from beets, wheat, corn, sunflower, coconut shell, olive, ...). Other materials are mainly inorganic (eg carbonates made from limestone)

• Perfumes are made with substances that are not classified as toxic to the environment, not classified as allergens and not classified as causing skin sensitization

• The compositions do not contain phosphates, phosphonates, phthalates, glycol ethers, formaldehyde or formaldehyde precursor.

• The colors and preservatives, when present, are all approved "food" or "cosmetic".

• The materials used in the composition of surface cleaning products (multi-surface, soil, bathroom, crockery, degreaser, cleaning glass surfaces, dust remover) shall be approved "food contact".

• Wherever possible, products are highly concentrated. For example, the washing liquid 3 liters allows 40 washes when most of the laundry liquids in the market 3 liters allows 25 washes, resulting in a significant reduction of packaging waste and cargo.

• Most types of products are available in refill.

• Formulas are not tested on animals.

• No animal substances enters the composition of our products.

• The enzymes used are grown on substances of plant origin.

• The L’Arbre Vert products present no risk sentences or symbol of danger.

• Ingredients are carefully selected to avoid any allergenic substance, irritant or creating other health problems. This is essential for L’Arbre Vert because today there is evidence that many cleaning products or cosmetics, even those that are "natural" may cause disease in some people.

The Cosmetox guide of Greenpeace list these diseases : greenpeace.org/raw/content/france/presse/dossiers-documents/rapport_cosmetox.pdf

What is the diference between an organic, Ecological, natural, green, and Eco friendly product?

Many claims are used to talk about a green product, but differences are notable:

Organic product

A cleaning product or cosmetic product called "organic" is a product which at least has 95% of its ingredients from plants or minerals, and 10% total composition must come from organic farming, which means without GMOs, chemical fertilizers, and pesticides.

Ecological Product

A product called "Ecological" is a product developed in accordance with criteria for the formulation and packaging in order to have less impact on the environment. This does not mean that the product is respectful of the person and the environment throughout its life cycle. In the absence of a recognized label, the consumer has no way to know if these arguments are satisfactory if there are no specific and complete criteria to respect, or official organism to confirm the veracity of the responses to criteria.

Natural product

A product called "natural" is a product extracted from nature. The word "natural" is more or less defined by legal instruments. On the other hand the term "natural" does not always guarantee a satisfactory respect of the person and the environment. Many natural substances are classified as "toxic" to the person and / or to the environment or are classified as allergens.

Green product

A product called "green" is a product that organic compounds are mainly of plant origin.

Eco friendly Product

A product called "environmentally friendly" should have a very good biodegradability and low ecotoxicity and respect the person, because humans are part of the environment.

The European Ecolabel guarantees the consumer that the product which has obtained ECOLABEL "the European eco-label" has satisfactory environmental qualities. That is why L’Arbre Vert has committed to develop all these products respecting the criteria of the European Ecolabel.

Why cleaning products are biodegradable?

Biodegradability is the ability for an organic substance to be degraded into primary substances by micro-organisms present in water or soil.

As foods are digested and provide energy and raw materials that our body needs to survive, microorganisms digest the organic matter they find, to live and multiply.

This process can be applied to all organic substances, whether it is a natural origin such as those that compose wood, oil, animal bodies, or a synthetic origin such as chemical products, such as medicines, plastics of all kinds, soaps derived from animal or vegetable fats, and of course, the surfactants.

These organic substances are always composed of carbon, hydrogen, nitrogen and sometimes sulfur.

Their digestion, then known as biodegradation, transforms the starting material.

It is decomposed mainly by giving carbon dioxide, by oxidation of carbon as in breathing, water, minerals from elements such as sulfur or intermediates which serve as cellular components of microorganisms (biomass) .

It is generally improper to talk about biodegradability of detergents. Indeed, detergents are products whose formulation is complex and often includes many ingredients that do not behave the same way after their release.

It is better to consider separately the biodegradability of each substance in its composition.

Moreover, the concept of biodegradability makes sense only for organic substances and does not apply to minerals such as those contained in detergents (for example zeolites, sulphates, carbonates, silicates).

The different biodegradabilities

Biodegradability is a possibility. Biodegradation is the actual result, which varies considerably depending on the conditions encountered in nature or in the tests to reproduce these conditions.

In the presence of oxygen in the environment, the biodegradability is called "aerobic", the carbon is oxidized into carbon dioxide. This is what happens in the waters well aerated, in sewage treatment plants where they breathed air or oxygen in the lagoons.

In the absence of oxygen, biodegradation is called "anaerobic". Other micro-organisms are involved and ultimately, if biodegradation is complete, the carbon will be converted to methane (marsh gas), as sometimes occur in soil, in shallow ventilated in the rumen ruminants.

If the degradation is complete, the biodegradation is said “final”: the starting material was converted in aerobic environment into carbon dioxide, water, minerals and biomass. The final level of biodegradation is the percentage of initial substance transformed. This level depends on the inherent capacity of the substance to be biodegraded, and depends also of the environmental conditions where biodegradation occurs, such as quantity and variety of microorganisms, the concentration of the substance in the place, the level and the renewal of oxygen, the temperature, the duration of contact with the substance of micro-organisms (of what hours in sewage treatment plant, few days in the river for months and years at sea), etc..

Biodegradability is called primary when the degradation of the substance is sufficient in aerobic environment, to eliminate some of its properties. In the case of surfactants, it is the loss of surfactant power, the power that contributes to clean by removing and blocking the dirt in the water. For some surfactants, it is the cause of the foaming power, at the origin, in the past, of some disturbance in surface waters.

In biodegradation tests, we will simulate the conditions that the substances are likely to encounter in the environment. Therefore, the percentage of biodegradation or qualification of biodegradability makes sense only if we specify the measurement conditions.

This is what the European Regulation also do when it imposes minimum values of final biodegradability for all surfactants in detergents, whatever their class, anionic surfactants, nonionic, cationic, amphoteric. In the formal tests allowing assessing the ultimate biodegradability, we should have 60% (or 70% in some tests) of the substance transformed into carbon dioxide so that the biodegradability is considered virtually complete. In fact another part of the substance has been degraded and transformed into biomass and therefore can not be found in the form of carbon dioxide.

In such trials, it is naturally impossible to achieve 100% conversion into carbon dioxide. With a quantity of carbon dioxide produced during the testing of at least 60%, the quantity of substance not degraded or only partially degraded is very low, in the order of percent. This threshold of 60% (70%) of ultimate biodegradation is much more severe than the 90% primary biodegradation previously taxed only to anionic surfactants and nonionic surfactants, these two categories that constitute the vast majority still used in detergents.

What are the initiatives that you can take to reduce packaging?

L’Arbre Vert work hard to reduce packaging; here are some examples of balance sheets taking into account the level of concentration of products (*):

> The hand dishwashing liquid bottle is more compact, which allow to transport 7% more bottles on a pallet.

> The washing powder box is more compact: 30% less cardboard, which allow to transport 56% more detergent boxes on a pallet.

> The laundry liquid box is more concentrated: 37% less plastic, which allow to transport 60% more bottles of laundry on a pallet.

> The laundry liquid refill: 80% less plastic, which allow to transport 65% more laundry on a pallet.

> Multi purpose cleaner refill: 80% less plastic, 113% more products on the pallet!

(*) Most L’Arbre Vert products are more concentrated than conventional products on the market.

On the other hand, L’Arbre Vert conducts awareness campaigns to reduce packaging

Do your products contain any animal substances?

None of L’Arbre Vert products contain animal substances.

The enzymes used in some products are produced on substances of plant origin.

Are your products tested on animals ?

None of L’Arbre Vert products is tested on animals if you consider the information that L’Arbre Vert has about the ingredients.

No producer has the right to market a product without completing all aspects of the safety data sheet and more specifically paragraph 11 which provides information on the toxicological risks of the product.

Some toxicological information allowing the classification of a component, have been obtained during the last century exclusively from tests on animals (LD50 in rats, mutagenic effects, carcinogenic and teratogenic effects on the aquatic environment, testing algae, bacteria, fish, irritability test).

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Commitment L'ARBRE VERT

Regarding all ingredients or components, nowadays, none of L’Arbre Vert suppliers are testing its products on animals, since their components are already listed with their risks.

Tests considering as essential are carried out with alternative methods that do not require the use of tests on animals. That is why L’Arbre Vert certifies that its formulas are not tested on animals. Its ingredients are selected primarily based on their potential biodegradability and their impact on the environment. The hypoallergenicity tests or dermatological control are performed on voluntary persons. Nevertheless, L’Arbre Vert can’t in any case, certify that all components used have never been tested on animals in the past.

What is it in your products?

L’Arbre Vert asks to its producers of raw materials of plant origin to target a variety of sources so as not to be confronted with problems of shortages or other problems related to specialty crops.

Molecules of plant used to manufacture the raw materials integrated into L’Arbre Vert products can be extracted from various plants.

For example:

1. The alcohols can be produced from fruit sugar, beet ... or wheat starch, corn ...

2. The sugar from beets, wheat starch, corn, ...

3. Oils can be produced from rapeseed, sunflower, olive, palm, coconut ...

The palm and coconut oils used are from producers who join the RSPO charter, which requires compliance with rules of Sustainable Development. This charter was developed with support from WWF.

On the other hand, L’Arbre Vert selects ingredients that do not contain allergenic substances officially known in order to minimize the risk of allergy.