The bag that's a loyalty scheme
Bags of Change was established by Faith Simpson in 2007 with the support of Hugh Willbourn and Stephanie Wienrich.
Our aim is to help reduce the use of plastic bags and to promote local and responsible shopping.
Faith says, “I wanted to create eco shopping bags that you would carry with you at all times, to give people greater access to information on where to shop more responsibly, and to give shoppers a greater incentive to shop locally for organic, Fairtrade, local and sustainable goods. I think it’s working!”
Bags of Change currently has over 70 shops offering fabulous discounts on ethical shopping and more joining regularly. Click here to see shops and discounts. And people love the bags. We have three beautiful bags in our range. The original bag is made from organic cotton and hemp with perfect coconut shell buttons. We now have new colours and a new version in organic cotton – funky and sturdy and will last a lifetime before harmlessly biodegrading. The rubber bag is very chic, fairly-traded and made from sustainably tapped rubber produced by a cooperative in the Amazon. It makes a fabulous ethical alternative to leather.
OUR ETHICS
Bags of Change takes into consideration the ecological and social impact of all areas of the business. We have not got it perfect yet but we continually strive to improve our impact on the planet and to ensure a fair deal for those involved in the production of our bags. And of course we do all the usual small but important things such as re-using and recycling everything we possibly can and using ecological products in the office and our homes.
THE ETHICS BEHIND THE BAGS
TREETAP RUBBER BAGS
These beautiful leather-look bags are made from wild Amazon rubber helping to create sustainable alternatives for the economic development of the Amazon. Workers are paid four times more than the regular market price for the wild rubber used.
The production of Treetap® would be impossible without the indigenous “Seringeros” (rubber tappers) and Indians that live deep in the Amazon Rainforest. Treetap® helps to valorize their lives and their traditional cultures and supports the preservation and sustainable use of the biodiversity of their lands.
HEMP-ORGANIC COTTON BAGS
These bags are a hemp-cotton mix; the cotton is organic and Control Union certified, the environmentally-friendly hemp is grown on small family farms and the buttons are made from coconut shell. All the processing of the bag is low impact and the fabric, dyes and prints are fully biodegradable. The textile mill is ISO9001:2000.
The factory we use for sewing specialises in sustainable and organic manufacturing. The workers are all over 19 years old and receive full training, proper safety equipment and an above average wage. They also get paid sick leave and maternity leave. The factory has agreed to receive a full independent audit this year (2009).
ORGANIC COTTON BAGS
Manufactured by a certified Global Organic Textile Standard compliant company and certified by Control Union. The Processing of the fabrics, both De sizing and Printing is carried out by GOTS certified company where the chemicals used are approved under the GOTS and monitored by Control Union.
The Bag production is carried out in Bangalore and the factories comply with the statutory requirements such as Statutory Minimum Wages, State Insurance, Provident Fund, Bonus etc. All the units are equal opportunity employers where the Cast, Creed, religion and gender plays no importance. All the units provide the most conducive work environment.
The bags are sea freighted to the UK to minimise their carbon footprint.
Do get in touch if you have any questions or would like to know more.
Faith Simpson
(Director)
Voted “Most Innovative Green Product” in the Green England Awards.