When I first heard about Seventh Generation’s new 4x Concentrated Laundry detergent I was excited to test it out. If I could use even less detergent it would hopefully reduce the amount of time I have to buy detergent, and also cut down on the plastic bottles I purchase. Much to my surprise, the bottle is not plastic, but made from paper!
The bottle uses 66% less plastic than a typical 100 oz bottle of detergent. It’s larger than Method’s plastic bottle I recently reviewed, but smaller than Whole Foods and Biokleen. The outer bottle is also compostable or recycled with our paper. The inner pouch is made of #4 plastic (like most plastic bags) and is also recyclable. The cap is also made from #5 plastic, which I recycle at my Whole Foods where they have a Preserve Gimme 5 drop box.
The actual laundry test was a bit limited this time. I was sent the Geranium Blossom and Vanilla scented detergent. While the scent is from essential oils, I still wasn’t comfortable using it on the kid’s clothes or the cloth diapers. So that left our towels and the grown-ups clothes. Overall I was happy with the wash, the smell was discreet, but still lingered on the clothes even a few days later. I haven’t used a detergent with a fragrance for probably four years so it was a little strange to smell anything coming out of the wash. I would purchase this again, but go for the free and clear option.
If you are looking for the new Seventh Generation 4x Concentrate in your local area, here is a list from EcoLogic, who created the very cool bottle. I hope to see more stores added to this list in the future.
Do you use a detergent with fragrance? If not, would you use one made with essential oils instead of chemicals?
Disclosure: I was provided a sample of Seventh Generations Laundry detergent to review. This in no way influenced my opinion written here.
I saw the paper bottles at Earth Fare on my last visit. I may just have to give them a go sometime, but will most likely go with the fragrance free version. Detergent with essential oils are great, however I'm allergic if they don't rinse completely from my clothing. Great post!
I am going to look for this ! I love that it's in a paper bottle.
I recently saw some pieces on some news show like fox and The Journal with Joan lunden on PBS that were talking about the importance of industry stepping it up in recycling. As some are lagging far behind, there are companies out there really pushing the envelope right now and 7th gen along with Honest tea are among them. They deserve to be rewarded in terms of dollars I hope people recognize and support these brands.