Glass vs. Plastic – Thoughts?

A week or so ago, another employee and I were discussing one of our bath product lines, and trying to figure out if the glass packaging was more environmentally friendly than plastic packaging. With this discussion in mind, I have been trying to learn enough on the topic to form an opinion on the matter. The problem is that the more I learn, the more confused I become. I think I am coming down tentatively on the side of glass packaging – especially for food products, and cosmetics/bath products, but I welcome comments!
Glass is problematic when it comes to the total energy usage required to produce, ship, and recycle it. Glass is made of sand that is heated to temperatures high enough to melt it, and then cooled quickly. This process is energy intensive because it requires such high temperatures, and fossil fuels are often used to produce this energy. Glass requires much more energy to produce than plastics. Glass is also heavier than plastic, and therefore requires more fossil fuels to be burned for transportation than plastic. Also, there is more danger of product wastage when using glass, because glass packaging is more prone to breaking than plastic packaging. Glass also requires more energy input than plastic to break it down when recycling.
However…..!!! Plastics are made from un-refined petroleum which is un-renewable. Also, many types of plastic can leach harmful chemicals into your food, bath products, and cosmetics. Additionally, if the packaging gets tossed away as litter, or put in a land-fill (and is not sent for recycling, tsk, tsk, and you know who you are…) glass will not leach chemicals into the environment as it sits. Plastic takes 600 years to break down when left in the environment, and in the mean-time, it releases polluting compounds which leach into the soil and water. Also, if glass finds its way to our oceans, it breaks down into little pieces of sea glass (rounded, smoothed, pebble-like pieces of glass, that many people collect at the beach and use in jewellery, and decorating). However, when plastic finds it way into our oceans, it simply floats around, and there are island sized deposits of garbage which have collected, and are floating around in our oceans – gross! Sometimes, sea animals eat this plastic, mistaking it for food, and it makes them sick, or can cause death.

So far then, I come down on the side of glass packaging because:

- I am selfish, and don’t want toxic chemicals leaching into the products I use and consume – even small, “harmless” levels of exposure!
- I like sea glass – even though it’s a product of pollution, it’s pretty! We have even sold products made from sea glass at P’Lovers!
- I don’t like the idea of people’s old plastic containers and packaging releasing any level of toxins into ground water and soil!
- I am hoping that humans as a species will move away from fossil fuels as a means of energy production, and as this happens, the levels of air pollution associated with glass production will go down! (I know, this is based on hope only, but we have to be optimistic, or else nothing will change!)

That’s All!
Mackenzie

here I go again!

I know it seems as if I am belaboring the point but as I walked to the store this morning I passed 2 Tim Horton’s and I was choked by the exhaust fumes in the air, I can only hold my breath so long and it is extremely difficult to express my dismay when I am unable to breathe.
I want to knock on the windows of these vehicles and suggest the drivers get their warm, caffeine lacking body’s out of the seat and enter the establishment, order coffee while waiting in the warmth of the 4 walls before coming out to start their vehicle and get on their way. On a morning like this one, at -28 I do concur that it is colder than we like but…it does take less gas to turn off the car and turn it back on than to idle for as long as it takes to get to the drive thru window. I cannot state exactly how long most people wait in the line but I will attest that it is longer than our environment can handle.
So, let’s get out of our cars and take care of business. It is up to us to spread the awareness which will hopefully lead to less spread of exhaust!

Great News for 2009!

Dear Friends;

Change can happen in the blink of an eye – or in my case, with P’lovers, with the ring of the telephone.

As many of you know, P’lovers in Port Perry has been for sale for several months – since April of last year to be exact. This decision was always my personal choice – a chance to change direction in my career path.

P’lovers has a tremendous business model, a great history, wonderful customers, dozens, if not hundreds of great suppliers, and products that really matter, today more than ever. In my perfect world, I was really hoping to pass the business to a new like-minded owner who could nurture it and take it to the next level.

Despite dozens of quality conversations with many great people, this did not seem to be happening and I had all but given up on the prospect. Timing is everything in business, like it is in life and, unfortunately, that perfect person did not appear to be stepping forward.

Until the phone rang a couple of days before Christmas, that is!

I am truly delighted to announce, that, after 9 days of great discussions (with maybe a day off for Christmas), I have reached an agreement with the people who will take over P’lovers – the little business I started 7 years ago!

While at this precise moment, I cannot divulge the identity of the new owners, I can say that they are both established business owners and significant members of the Port Perry community. To say I was surprised when I got the phone call would be an understatement, but knowing them both as I do, they will do wonderfully in their new business venture. They will bring the type of energy, enthusiasm, experience, and new point-of-view so crucial to the success of any business, regardless of how established.

My last day at P’lovers is the end of this month, Saturday, January 31st. Many of you reading this letter have played a tremendous part in making my time at P’lovers so wonderful over the years. Liz Crocker and Ann Caverzan in Nova Scotia came up with this brilliant P’lovers idea almost 17 years ago! I’m so grateful that they took a chance on me, giving me the opportunity to bring P’lovers to Port Perry. I’m especially thrilled for them that their concept will continue in our community.

A ‘good day’ for me in the store was one where I could re-connect, ever so briefly, with one of our many regular customers. Recently, a woman and her two daughters reminded me of my very first day in business in our little store down the street — when I didn’t know how to use my own cash register! That brief, rather unexpected memory simply made my day!

I am absolutely convinced that the most interesting people in the world are regular P’lovers customers and I have been blessed to have had the opportunity to meet so many of you throughout the years. I’ve been doubly blessed to have turned many of these passing acquaintances into some true, lasting friendships.

If we don’t happen to see each other between now and the 31st, it is quite likely you may still see me from time to time in the great little community of Port Perry. If you see me walking the kids to and from school; taking the golden doodle to the dog park; shopping our unique little downtown – and most specifically, my favourite store, it is my hope that you will take a moment and say hello. Until then, be well.

Peace,
Steve

Guess What’s Hiding…

On very rare occasions, I see or read something that so precisely encapsulates the enormity of the challenges that our human species has placed upon ourselves and our planet. The message that is presented will creatively cut through the complexity with such simplicity that it almost takes my breath away. This is one of those rare moments.

Thanks to a special P’lovers customer, Tracey McCannell, for sending this brilliant presentation to me.

Before you click…
The presentation is a 4.7 Mb Microsoft Powerpoint file that may take a few moments to download (depending on the speed of your Internet connection). If your computer already has Powerpoint installed, the presentation is set up to run in full-screen, slide show mode and should fire up automatically. Advance to the next slide by hitting the “enter” button or space bar. Exit the presentation by hitting the “Esc” button. If you have presentation software other than Powerpoint, it may still run. (I can view it on my ASUS eeepc running OpenOffice for Linux.) When prompted, save the file to your computer, open your presentation software and look for the file.

Now click here to Guess What’s Hiding…

Enjoy!
-Steve

Let’s Get Green!

Today my eyes were opened yet again. I am always pleased at the prospect of learning as I go and today on the job I was chatting with a lovely woman as I rang through her purchases, and as usual I offered her one of our compostable, biodegradable BioBags mentioning that she could use it in her green bin. She replied, that no she could not because she doesn’t have one, neither does she have blue boxes. I was dumbfounded, is this not a normal everyday part of life? To use a blue box, to sort your recyclables on a regular basis and put them out at the curb bi weekly?

Obviously not? I proceeded to question her, and when she told me she lived here in our lovely town in the apartments at Water and Casimir Streets I was doubly surprised. I have spoken with others here at the store who are in the same situation, they have come from another area of Durham Region, leaving me with an air of superiority when I explain that here in Port Perry, and Prince Albert, we are all green bin-ners and blue boxers extraordinaire.

Imagine my dismay when I realized she is just around the corner and did not have access to these services. We, here at Queen Street Commons, are frantic recyclers and put our green bin filled with compostables out on the curb regularly! And I was under the impression that the residential areas of the town are all under the green spell.

Come on Port Perry, get with the program! All apartment owners should be encouraged to bring the blue box and green bin plans to their residents. It is one easy step we can take to ensure we leave this world a little tidier then we found it.

I am off to put a bee in the bonnet of the public works department of Scugog. Wish me luck!

-Jude