Yoga props and the environment

Like all thinking and reading humans, we are deeply concerned about the state of our planet and our modern human tendency to over-consume and in the process generate vast amounts of greenhouse gases and toxic pollution.

We believe that the practice of yoga is an important factor in raising people’s consciousness about all things including our impact on our world. The introspection that yoga invites helps us to find contentment with the simple and to consider the wider effects of our actions. The mission for our business is to support this practice with as little impact as possible.

• April 20th, 2023
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• Categories: Environment

Here are some of the ways by which we attempt to minimise our impact-

1. Wherever possible we source and supply quality products that will last forever. We reject the throwaway culture and the practice of built-in obsolescence.
2. Where synthetic products are used we attempt to source the raw material from recycled stock.
3. Where recycled synthetics are not available, we attempt to minimise harmful chemicals in production.
4. Wherever possible we offer products which are made from natural materials
5. Where naturally grown materials are used we try to source organically grown product
6. We use wood from plantation timbers
7. We minimise the amount of plastic packaging we use.
8. If satisfactory function and longevity can be achieved with a lighter weight of material, we use the lighter weight thus saving on raw materials and transport costs. We pioneered the use of the Easy Fill sandbag where you supply the sand negating the need to ship sand around the world.
9. We source our electricity from renewable sources.
10. We use reusable cups for our takeaway beverages or we sit down and drink it at the cafe like civilized people 🙂

We recognise that the very best environmental outcome is achieved if the product never has to be replaced. This means that the equation is not always straightforward. Is it better to use a natural rubber mat that might have to be replaced several times or a synthetic mat that lasts forever? The solution is not always as simple as choosing the natural. What water use, fertilizers, forest clearing, etc. may be necessary. Consequently, we supply some high-quality low toxicity PVC mats. We prefer not to use TPE mats as they are not long-lasting.

We have been able to source bolster stuffing made from recycled post-consumer waste (the best kind of waste). PET drink bottles are turned into excellent fiber for our eco bolsters. Our other bolsters are filled with organically grown cotton, a good second option though we recommend the PET kind because even organically grown cotton has an environmental cost.

We supply many EVA foam yoga blocks. Recently we have been able to source new engineering of these blocks which means that significantly less plastic is used for the same amount of strength and resilience.

Our iYoga cushions are now made from a foam product significantly lighter than previous cushions and therefore using less energy. Happily, they are of excellent and consistent firmness.

Most of our wooden products are made by an artisan here in Victoria.  He uses recycled or plantation-grown NZ clear pine.  For our imported wood, we specify plantation timbers only.

We are in an ongoing struggle with our suppliers to get rid of the plastic packaging that most of their other customers seem to prefer. Where can we request and use biodegradable paper and cardboard packaging.

For years now we have supplied cotton blankets from China made from reclaimed cotton.  Soon we will be sourcing a new cotton blanket from India also made from post-manufacturing process reclaimed cotton. We are excited about this new product.

The search is ongoing for the most enviro-friendly products we can find to assist you to become the friendliest world citizen you can be.