Eden is a new American company combining a love of fashion with eco-friendly ethics. Launched in November, the brand crafts tote bags from eco-fi, a polyester fibre made from recycled plastic bottles.
The bottles used are sorted by color and type, then stripped of caps and labels. They’re thoroughly washed, then crushed and chopped up into small flakes. These flakes are melted down to create eco-fi.
“We’re introducing this line of tote bags for two reasons,” explained Jan Verploeg Petsch, founder of Eden bags. “Our primary goal was to impact our environment by using recycled fabric. Our next desire was to help our economy by using U.S. labor and materials.”
Eden is the only American label using completely home-grown recycled PET plastic. That commitment to keeping industry at home extends to the cotton prints and manufacture.
“We could have reduced our production costs substantially if we had gone overseas, but then we’d be part of our country’s problem. We committed to investing into our own labor force.”
The durable totes are ideal for grocery shopping as they can hold up to seven two-liter bottles. You’d need three plastic bags to carry the same amount. The totes fold up to next to nothing so you can stash them inside a larger purse, ready for those emergency grocery dashes. Although with fun designs like this Box Step, I’d be happy to carry them to the markets!
Eden isn’t just committed to the environment. A portion of all profits benefit Feeding America’s Hungry Children, a charity that distributes food and other groceries to hunger relief agencies across the country.
Eden Bags are available from selected stores and online at Twelve Rivers from $24.99.
