After watching plastic pile up, this Windsor woman creates eco-friendly shop
CBC
Business owner Andrea Descargar is on a mission to reduce, and eventually eliminate, single-use plastics and waste in the community.
After years of working in post-industrial recycling and waste management, seeing the amount of waste going to landfills, the Windsorite thought: "We can do better than this."
Descargar launched her own business Ecovana last year, producing eco-friendly products like package-free soap and package-free lotion bars . After a year-and-a-half of selling her products online, she just opened up a storefront on Howard Ave., which had its grand opening on Saturday.
"Everything that we can do to try and eliminate waste — that is what pushes me," Descargar explained.
According to a 2019 federal study on Canada's plastic industry, it was estimated that just nine per cent of plastic waste was recycled. That was a number that motivated Descargar to take action.
She still works in recycling with Green City Plastics and juggles those responsibilities with her new business.
When the brand first launched last year, she was selling common items that need to be recycled like produce bags — but then things "took off" when she started making shampoo bars, to replace shampoo bottles.
"They're mega concentrated and really help reduce waste for anyone who showers!," she laughed.
She was working out of her house, making things like deodorant paste in her kitchen, until demand led to the opening of the storefront.
Products are either package-free or if packaged, it's reusable. There's also a mini-refillery station for customers to fill up jars with hand soap and dish soap. Not all products at the store are by Ecovana, but the ones that aren't are still sourced from other eco-friendly Canadian companies, Descargar explained.
It all means, "less plastic in our landfill," she added.
"It really helps teach our younger generations on how we could use things that we need, but without the waste."
And it's a goal resonating with many environmentally-conscious people in the community, like Melissa Baldock.
"I'm slowly starting my more-sustainable product journey," Baldock explained.
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