When it comes to "green" products I live in the tension of wanting to be an early adapter and show great care, but also not wanting to get taken by misinformation or marketing campaigns (called greenwashing). Also, I believe that re-use is usually the best option for the Earth (and my money). It seems silly to me when people discard functioning items, from cars to water bottles, to buy a "green" replacement. Finally, it seems to me that unless I know more about the manufacturing, packaging and shipping process of the item or food, I may have a serious misconception about how "green" the product or food really is.
With this tension and uncertainty in mind, I hesitantly put out there what seems to be a good source. As you can see from the list of concerns, how can I stay on top of the life cycle of everything I buy or eat? This resource, Good Guide, doesn't cover everything, but it has extensive food and personal care reviews and, more importantly, good information about how to increase our intelligence in this area.
A good example of this whole process at work is applying this "industrial ecology" to something I recently purchased: a metal water bottle. After analyzing the extraction, processing, manufacturing, distribution, use and disposal, I learn that I need to use the bottle 500 times to beat plastic (though there is increasing benefit after only 50 uses).
In the interest of avoiding "all or nothing" thinking, I want to use Earth Day to further nudge me into a comprehensively responsible life.
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FYI - ran across this marketing ploy by Reynolds Wrap. Even thought aluminum foil has been 100% recycled since the 1970s, they've now chosen to "green up" their image to promote it.
http://is.gd/uVcu
Thanks for the link. This one I find odd b/c why is this person so upset that this isn't a new practice from Reynolds and calls it a "gimmick"? If the recycle claims are true, I certainly don't mind that they just now got around to advertising it. Weird.
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