As more and more products with labels like "green" and "sustainable" enter the marketplace, companies look for new ways to stand out. And the latest development? Furnishings labeled "biodegradable." In a truly interesting article, The New York Times explores biodegradable furniture and furnishings and how they relate to William McDonough's Cradle to Cradle manifesto...
No matter how silly it is that a $7,000 sofa is labeled "biodegradable," it is good to see companies examining the end-stage of their products and how they can least impact the environment.
Included in The Times' story are products we've covered on AT:
Looolo textiles, EcoGen biodegradable polymer and Umbra's Corn Plastic. For the full story and even information on a biodegradable sofa see Biodegradable Home Product Lines, Ready to Rot.
Originally posted by Aaron on AT:NY.
© 2009 Apartment Therapy
I really dislike the idea of marketing furniture as biodegradable. To me, that sounds a lot like marketing it as disposible and it shouldn't be. A good piece of furniture should last a long time and either get passed down as an heirloom or sold on Craigslist or something to someone who wants it. I realize that at some point the thing reaches the end of it's useful life and at that point being biodegradable is probably a good thing but marketing it for it's end of life, which should be decades away, seems ridiculous and kind of missing the point.
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