Mad Alchemy is gradually transitioning to the use of 100% post-consumer recycled plastic resin jars (#2 recyclable). They have teamed up with one of the nation’s top jar manufacturers to bring this bleeding edge technology to market. They are the first of their customers to make the leap, take the risk and use these 100% post consumer recycled resins in our product line. From now on you’ll notice that all of their Chamois Crèmes will be contained within these green (literally and figuratively) containers. Admittedly, the PCR jars aren’t as polished or pretty as the virgin polypropylene (#5 recyclable) that they are currently using, but Mad Alchemy feels that the environmental benefits of the new jars far outweigh the superficial aesthetics.

Additionally, Mad Alchemy has committed to printing our labels on Earthfirst® vegetable based adhesive films. These innovative adhesives are produced using annually renewable plant sources through a nearly carbon neutral production process. The films are also completely compostable to the ASTM D6400 and DIN EN 13432 standards. So even if they don’t end up getting recycled, the labels will break down relatively easily and quickly.

As always Mad Alchemy Embrocations are produced from petroleum free ingredients and local ingredient vendors are utilized whenever possible. They are taking advantage of local companies that are offering higher % bio-fuel options to heat headquarters and rely on man-powered transportation whenever possible and have been known to deliver goods by bicycle to our local customers.

Mad Alchemy admits they have got a long way to go in order to meet all of their environmental goals for 2011. They will though continue to experiment, innovate and work towards decreasing their environmental impact and carbon footprint. Down the road they hope to increase their philanthropic efforts by giving more to grassroots environmental causes. They also hope to further reducing product packaging and increasing their use of post-consumer recycled materials for both shipping and containing our goods.

Bravo!

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Go Green Fitness - Converting Your Workout Into Clean, Renewable Energy



A cycling fitness studio called Go Green Fitness in Orange, Connecticut has developed a program that converts power generated from cycling workouts into clean and renewable energy.

A typical group cycling class with about 20 bikes has the potential to produce up to 3.6 megawatts of renewable energy per year (the amount of power used to light 72 homes for a month) and reducing carbon emissions by more than 5,000 pounds. The entire group cycling studio, comprised of 24 indoor cycles, is connected to the studio’s electrical grid through an inverter, so the energy created by the cyclists can power all aspects of the facility, lowering the studio’s carbon emissions as well as the community’s demand for fossil fuel-based energy.

Excess electricity generated from the club can return to the power grid for other energy use in the community. All cycling participants can control and monitor their individual renewable energy output through a resistance control panel attached to the bicycle, and Go Green Fitness can track the total energy that is produced through exercise on the Go Green Fitness web site.

The fitness studio utilizes technology developed by a company called The Green Revolution, the gym The Green Revolution connects health + energy + environment by turning human effort within a health club into usable energy... an idea whose time has come.