Oh well, eco-friendly cleaning is such a tricky subject. Because does it actually exist? Something that kills bacteria and fungi will also have an effect on the environment. So you can never dump suds in the garden, but there are brands that try to do better. Eco-friendly cleaning: which brands are better and where can you find them? We take you through a lot of them!
Eco-friendly cleaning: who should you get to know?
This list had to and would come one day. With the launch of my sustainable lifestyle book: NIKS NIEUWS, yet it will surprise you the time had finally come. I sat down to it and came up with a good list of eco-friendly - or rather, eco-friendlyre cleaning products - created, including a list of (web) shops where you can find those products. In my book, I take you on my sustainable quest. For each lifestyle topic, I tell what is going on in (and with) the world, I tell you what the process has been like for me personally and I share lots of tips I have gained over the past few years. Cleaning is also covered extensively in my sustainable lifestyle book.
In my book, you will also find shopping lists. Well, they are QR codes to shopping lists, like this article, that is. Because that's more convenient because I can then easily update those online lists when a new brand is added or one sadly disappears. And so this is the list for eco-friendly cleaning products and shops.
There it is: your new sustainable cleaning guide!
This list of eco-friendly cleaning products is not exhaustive, but is meant to get you started. Do you have a great tip? Then feel free to contact me and I can expand the list. You can get in touch via the follow and contact buttons at the bottom of this page.
Are you curious about my book? I get that! You can order it from my webshop. I would love that!
What is eco-friendly cleaning?
When compiling this list, I tried to pay attention to a few things:
- What is the motivation for using/not using certain ingredients? Note: whether something is made of natural ingredients does not necessarily mean anything about sustainability. Sometimes, synthetic ingredients can be used deliberately.
- Do products from this brand have one or more labels or does the brand have a certain track record/authority position.
- Is the brand microplastic-free, vegan or at least animal-tested?
- Can I really not catch them making misleading claims?
- Is more known about the entrepreneurial story behind the brand?
- Are they doing more for the planet?
Environmentally-friendly cleaning
Most brands sell several cleaning products. If a brand specialises in one or a select number of products, I have included it.
- Anura (Eco-Point's consumer line that has been making ecological cleaning products for industry for more than 30 years, certified with the EU Ecolabel)
- Attitude (wide range of cleaning products from Canada, vegan and certified eco-friendly)
- Bio-D (Good, ethical and environmentally friendly cleaning is what the UK founder of Bio-D has been working towards for years after discovering unnecessary harmful substances being added in cleaning products)
- BioTat (Established Belgian name in ecological cleaning and care, limited availability in NL)
- Brauzz (New kid who became best known for wax strips. But they offer more cleaning products, some also in paper strip. Less transport, less water and vegan)
- Cosmeau (cheerful cleaning brand available online that includes wax strips, scent boosters and basics cleaning kit)
- The Traay (Old skool household soap you can use to do many cleaning jobs or use in your own DIY cleaning recipes. Vegan, microplastic-free and with sustainable palm oil)
- Triangle (Green soap: cheap, effective, easily available and more environmentally friendly. Green soap is made from natural ingredients)
- Ecodoo (Established ecological cleaning brand from France with seal of approval, they donate 1% of their profits to charity)
- Ecopods (Simple set of ecological cleaning products you can use to tackle the house. You buy a stainless steel bottle once and top it up with pods and water each time. This saves you waste and transport. This cleaning brand is from Belgium and with every purchase they plant a tree, also vegan and cruelty-free)
- Ecover (trendsetter in eco-friendly cleaning. They have a wide range of products and innovative ideas such as their refill stations and food waste cleaning products)
- Enjoy La Vida (natural scouring pads and tools)
- Frosch (Established ecological cleaning brand from Germany with certification)
- HappySoaps (Handmade Dutch care and cleaning products: vegan, animal-tested and plastic-free)
- Ha-Ra (German cleaning brand based on natural ingredients, also only available online)
- Jemako (Simple cleaning products from Germany, also only available to order online)
- Clock (Primal Dutch cleaning brand, has been around for 100 years, also with eco-friendly labels)
- La droguerie écologique (French cleaning brand with rock-solid, certified products)
- LoofCo (eco-friendly sponges and other useful tools)
- Marcel's Green Soap (wide range of eco-friendly cleaning products, including vegan and cruelty-free. They are now experimenting with refill packs to reduce plastic)
- Natural Senz (eco-friendly detergent from the Netherlands and (micro)plastic-free)
- Seepje (eco-friendly cleaning brand from the Netherlands that has thought of all sustainable aspects and openly communicates what is and what is not true about sustainable claims)
- Sodasan (German brand with many different household products)
- Sonett (European leader in ecological cleaning with many awards)
- The Good Brand (Dutch cleaning brand committed to a better world for both people and animals)
- Young Living (cleaning products with essential oils)
- Waft (fine laundry perfume and fabric softener in droplet form, vegan)
- Yard soap (Organic and handmade soaps from Utrecht for personal care and cleaning)
- Yokuu (cleaning with good bacteria, this innovative cleaning brand is from Belgium).
- So (natural and vegan cleaning products from the Netherlands, with refill packs)
Grandma knows the advice: don't forget these simple cleaning products either
They are effective, environmentally friendly and cheap: old-fashioned cleaning products that our grandparents used too. These products should not be missing from your cleaning cupboard either: baking soda, natural vinegar, citric acid, aleppo soap, green soap and ox gall soap. The latter is neither vegan nor animal-friendly (by-product of the meat industry), but it will get just about any stain out of your clothes.
Fine (web) shops with eco-friendly(er) cleaning products
Photo credits: Angela de Vlaming.
