You might be wondering exactly why you would want eco-friendly or Fairtrade products for your kitchen, but we only get one Earth and we believe we should protect it and treat the people on it with dignity and respect. We decided that stocking eco-friendly and Fairtrade products is one way we can contribute to a better planet. Here are some brands you can support to not only make your kitchen look stunning while making the planet better for all of us.
What is Fairtrade?
Before you start envisioning your kitchen decorated in beautiful, minimalist designs, we wanted to let you know what you’re supporting first. According to the Fairtrade Foundation, buying Fairtrade products is about creating “better prices, decent working conditions, local sustainability, and fair terms of trade for farmers and workers in the developing world.” Fairtrade products require that companies pay people sustainable prices for their goods. Traditional trade typically discriminates against the poorest and weakest producers, and buying Fairtrade products helps to address these inequalities.
What does Eco-Friendly Mean?
There are a lot of definitions of what eco-friendly means, but our favorite is: eco-friendly products are designed to do the least possible damage to the environment. We know that’s a really broad definition, but a few good examples of ways a company can be eco-friendly are:
- Using less water in the manufacturing process
- Getting their resources through sustainable procurement
- Operating out of a “green” building
- Offsetting their carbon emissions from production, shipment, and everyday use
- Recycling manufacturing waste
- Using renewable energy in their manufacturing process and/or in their offices
At Uniek Living, we’re excited to carry brands that are dedicated to eco-friendly and Fairtrade products.
Four of our favorite environmentally responsible brands:
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KINTA
KINTA is a brand that has been focused on sustainability and social responsibility for over 25 years. All of their products are designed in the Netherlands and handmade by workers in Africa or Asia. KINTA has developed an incredibly close relationship with all of their suppliers and producers, and ensure that all of their products are Fairtrade products. KINTA believes in ethically sourcing all of their materials and regularly visits their artisan communities, ensuring all of their producers and suppliers are paid fairly and treated with respect. By purchasing KINTA Fairtrade products, you’re not only being socially responsible, but you’re also filling your kitchen with wonderful, minimalist designs. Here are some of our favorites.
Are you looking to brighten up your kitchen? These two-tone wooden bowls by KINTA will make any food you cook stand out with their elegant and minimalist designs. You can mix and match the colors of the bowls to ensure you never have to pull out that one, chipped bowl in the back of the cupboard.
The KINTA Teapot is a beautiful and long-lasting addition to any kitchen. If you've fallen in love with the KINTA teapot and want another product to match or are you just looking for some cheery kitchenware to impress your guests, then you'll adore the Jap Footed Bows by KINTA. They are a perfect match for the teapot and a true crowd-pleaser. With a matte black finish on the outside and bright, lively colors on the inside, these bowls are the perfect blend of minimalist designs and energy.
2. ZUPERZOZIAL
ZUPERZOZIAL wants their products to be more than just functional; they want to ensure that all of their products have a positive impact on the world. All of ZUPERZOZIAL’s kitchenware is made of biodegradable bamboo and corn, and reinforced with melamine resin. These biodegradable products take only three years to degrade once they’re disposed of, so you can rest assured you won’t be contributing to any landfills in the future. ZUPERZOZIAL merges bright colors with minimalist designs to create eco-friendly products for the modern home. These are a few of our favorite ZUPERZOZIAL products.
The ZUPERZOZIAL bread basket is a fun and stylish piece to add to any table or countertop. The wide openings and clean lines make the basket feel like it takes up less space than it does.
The minimalistic salad servers by ZUPERZOZIAL come in a variety of interesting colors and will spice up any salad. These bold salad servers highlight the best aspects of minimalist designs.
These beautiful biodegradable hanging herb pots are the perfect, functional decoration for your kitchen. Hang these on your walls and let your herbs grow. Now you can cook your favorite meal and grab whatever herbs you need right in your own kitchen. These pots are ideal if you’re looking to embrace functional, eco-friendly, and minimalist designs.
These are one of our favorite eco-friendly and practical products for your kitchen. Part of the original biodegradable tableware collection, this set of measuring spoons come in a rainbow of colors to make your kitchen and dining room the warm and welcoming place it deserves to be. The spoons are all ethically produced and made from bamboo, corn, and melamine to ensure they don’t end up in landfills for hundreds of years. Forget the plastic utensils, these fun and colorful spoons are perfect for picnics, barbecues, parties, family gatherings, and so much more!
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K’WILLEM IN HUIS
K’WILLEM IN HUIS is a father-daughter team that makes beautiful products out of iron. The metal they use comes from iron scraps so they are “upcycling” the source materials, ensuring that the creation of their products has a minimal impact on the environment. They mold and bend the iron rods to create slightly crooked lines, taking a playful approach to their minimalist designs. All of K’WILLEM IN HUIS’ products are handmade and are never the same, so no matter what you purchase it will be uniquely yours. These are a couple of our favorite K’WILLEM IN HUIS products for the kitchen.
When you think of bowls you probably think of a round, deep dish used for ice cream or cereal, but what K’WILLEM IN HUIS created is something entirely different. The flat bowl is made from long, slightly curved pieces of recycled round iron. This piece makes a perfect centerpiece, design element for your sideboard, or a beautiful place to store your fruits and vegetables. No matter where you decide to put it, the flat bowl by K’WILLEM IN HUIS will make a statement in your home.
The powder-coated, recycled round iron that makes the K’WILLEM IN HUIS metal basket will give any surface a touch of character. Are you looking for a way to declutter your counter and store fruit or tea towels? This metal basket is your answer. Use as-is or line with an organic tea towel and your counter will be less cluttered in no time.
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NADESIGN
NADESIGN is a Dutch home decor brand. Staying true to their roots, all of their products are handmade in the Netherlands. They never use machinery or assembly lines to create their products, helping them cut back on the environmental impact of production. They also utilize raw materials like wood, leather, ceramics, paper, and concrete keeping their environmental footprint small.
This ceramic bowl is handmade by NADESIGN producers. The clay is poured into the mold and each piece is individually glazed. The bowl is glossy on the inside with a matte finish on the outside. It stands on three wooden legs, giving it a depth and structure perfect for those looking for more minimalist designs. You can use the NADESIGN bowl for serving, display, or storage.
This NADESIGN bowl with leather handles compliments their bowl with wooden legs seamlessly. The added touch of the leather handles creates a unique piece that will have everyone that visits your home and dines with you wondering where you find such innovative and beautiful pieces.
Ways to have a Green Kitchen
Do you love these eco-friendly and Fairtrade products but want to do more to make your kitchen environmentally friendly?
- Limit the amount of packaging you purchase. We know buying individually wrapped products can be convenient, but buying cereal, grains, and other goods in bulk at a local grocer or co-op will reduce the amount of packing that ends up in landfills after one use.
- Bring your groceries home in reusable bags. The plastic bags you get at the grocery store can take 10 to 1,000 years to decompose. Instead of using bags that inevitably end up in landfills, grab some reusable shopping bags, like this one from ZUPERZOZIAL, and make plastic bags a thing of the past.
- Reduce water waste. This one might seem difficult since you need water for cooking, but there are plenty of small ways to reduce the amount of water you use in the kitchen. For example, instead of rinsing kitchenware before placing it in the dishwasher, scrape any remaining food into the trash can instead. You can also keep a pitcher of water in the fridge instead of running the tap every time you’re thirsty and waiting for the water to turn cold.
- Reduce your food waste. Instead of throwing out the excess food after a meal, eat it as leftovers the next day for your lunch or dinner. Have extra ingredients you didn’t use? Try out a new recipe using the ingredients so they don’t go to waste.
- Compost your waste. Many people don’t want to deal with the mess and smell of composting, but today there are so many services that pick up your compost bins for you and give you soil in the spring in return. Not interested in soil? Most places also sell the soil to local farms. Things like food scraps, coffee grounds, paper plates, and tea bags are all items that can be composted.
- Support local farmers. Eating locally sourced foods means your food didn’t have to travel across the country to get to you. Not only will your food be fresher, but you’ll also be supporting a local business and reducing your environmental footprint.
We’re proud to carry so many eco-friendly and Fairtrade products. This Earth deserves our respect, as do the people who live on it. We also know how important it is to feel comfortable in your home and we believe these products built on the fundamentals of minimalist designs will make your house feel like a home.
Interested in other minimalist designs for your home? Learn how you can use minimalist designs and modern furniture in your dining room.