A Guide to Green Labeling

Greetings. My name is Mike Solakian, and I am the fifth and final member of GoGreen573. After looking back over what my fellow teammates have written about so far, and seeing how each time we've written "I'm not sure what to write," I had a good feeling going into today as to what I would talk about. A friend of mine is very green-savvy, and she tweeted an article from Earth911.com that she wrote about Green Labeling to look out for. She took her information from a studying done by a branding and integrated marketing agency. I am going to talk about the labels, and have a link to her story on Earth911 where you can read up more about the labels, as well as see them.

The reason for green labels on products is to assure the consumer that the item is environmentally friendly and that they, in fact, are certified to do as promised. There is a wide range of labels, but some of the most common are mentioned in the article. The most recognizable label (and #1 on the list) is the recycling symbol. We've all seen it, the three green arrows forming a triangle. The meaning behind this icon is that the item is recyclable. Most of us know that label, and didn't need this blog to tell you about it.

There are some other less-recognizable labels to the untrained eye, however. One, for example, is the Fair Trade Certified label (#7 on the list). The term Fair Trade is becoming more and more known, but the label is still not as recognized. While some may have seen it before, others would wonder what this label means. If you see the label located in the article on a product, you can be assured that manufacturing had a fair price, fair labor conditions and direct trade, just to name a few.

Finally, I am going to talk about one more of the top 10 labels. While the Certified Humane Raised & Handled label (#9) is pretty self-explanatory, it is still important to know. This label denotes that the product prohibited the use of growth hormones and antibiotics, and that the animals must be free to move and not be confined. Most of these labels have an organization behind them, with a website, like this one. There is a website where you can do a search and find grocery stores near you that carry Certified Humane Raised & Handled products. Use Missouri as an example (where 573 is located). All Schnuck's stores carry Certified Humane Raised & Handled Eggs. This is a valuable resource if you are adamant about living a Green lifestyle.

The importance of knowing all these labels (and more) is to help live a better lifestyle. We here at GoGreen573 hope to educate the masses about Green lifestyles, Green movements and pretty much anything we can get our hands on. Having access to knowledge about labels in specific are important because we are consumers by nature. We purchase items nearly every day, and if we can recognize that the gallon of milk we buy is locally produced, or the chicken we buy is certified humane raised and handled, that one step could lead us towards living a healthier lifestyle. Also, a lot of these labels (like the recycling label) denote how we can help preserve the earth and keep are planet and environment as healthy and clean as possible.

Hopefully this list of labels can even give you one more reason to take an extra look at a label and make a more educated decision and purchase for our environment.

Have a good weekend, all. We will be back on the blogs on Monday. Don't forget to layer up in those colder regions of the country instead of blasting the heat. You can save more energy, and money as well.