2009-05-20

ReJAVAnate Bag Contest!!!

With my massive Internet influence that span tens and tens of people, I have been able to finagle some free stuff for the viewers of not only this blog but those of The Corner Office Blog run by my old college bud Grant. So what is the prize? Two super nice ReJAVAnate grocery bags are up for grabs. Yup, I gracefully asked ReJAVAnate to donate a couple of bags for me to review and then offer up to the commenting public. I can't believe it either. (Quick note: Actual pictures of bags to come tomorrow)


From this Saturday the 23rd of May to Sunday the 31st of May I am going to run 9 Days of Dyslexic Research's Guide to Green. I missed Earth Day, sure but I plan on 9 days of topics that should help inform the everyday person of real, green ways to live your life, with no hype. Believe me these will not only be green ideas but also ways to save you money. With day 9 devoted to my final informed review on the ReJAVAnate bags. The Corner Office Blog will do whatever Grant wants to do.


So to enter the contest simply comment here at Dyslexic Research or over at The Corner Office Blog between May 23 to 31. You get one entry per blog post per day either here or there. So a commenter that commented 8 times on my post one day would get only one entry, but if that commenter posted 8 comments on eight different posts he/she would get 8 entries. Or if they posted a comment on each of our blogs on the same day they would receive 2 entries that day. It will probably take a couple of days after the 31st, but I will put all of the comment entries together and pick a winner the following week.



So how nice are the bags? Well ReJAVAnate sent me two of there Large Grower Bags that are lined with recycled canvas for extra sturdiness, an $18 value. I should add that these bags were sent to me in an old phone box to 'shamelessly' reuse packaging (hey that's their own words). These bags are roughly 15" wide by 15" tall and look to hold at least two gallons of milk per bag with room to spare for a lot more tasty groceries. If books were your thing, between the two of them I think you could clear a shelf of paperbacks. Stitching looks to be top notch, especially when you compare this to one of those $.99 bags from the store. Unlike those flimsy bags made in China of polypropylene, these bags are made to last. So far they incorporate everything green thing that I believe in: quality product, long-lasting looks, reused materials, and a good cause. Not bad.


Also cool is the grower's logo on the burlap of each bag. So cool in fact that guys can carry these things around and not feel like a tool with some flowered or pastel thing slung over your shoulder. No, these bags look like souvenirs from your trip to Columbia after helping farmers carry coffee beans over the mountain cliffs avoiding various jungle guerrillas or whatever. In reality your helping both workers with disabilities have real work with real value and recycle burlap and canvas keeping these materials out of landfills. Still pretty cool.


So tune in here or over at Grant's blog and comment and enter to win!




More Info on ReJAVAnate (from their website):

"ReJAVAnate - making a difference one bag at a time! This is a great story.
These bags address three important issues:
1). They reduce a significant
source of landfill waste - burlap from coffee
2). They provide jobs to those
that often have difficulty finding jobs - The
ARC

3). They provide a good way to reduce our paper and plastic bag
consumption

The ReJAVAnate story is one of the most compelling sustainability stories
you will find - our material, who makes the bags, where they are made and that
the bags are completely biodegradable. Much better than the usual reusable bags
made from nonwoven polypropylene in China!

Did you know:
- Coffee is the second largest commodity in the world
- 800,000 tons of burlap are put into landfills every year
- The ARC
helps 140,000 people find housing and employment
- US consumes over 380
billion plastic bags, sacks and wraps
- 14 million trees were cut to produce
10 billion paper bags for grocery stores in the US"

2 comments:

David Csonka said...

Very cool, I had no idea that coffee generates so much waste, though I figured it was pretty high up there in terms of usage.

I have a few of those types of bags, but I always seem to forget them when I go to the grocery store. We do use the plastic bags as garbage bags though, so I suppose that is somewhat helpful.

Fernbo said...

As an avid coffee drinker I definitely in favor of this contest. The bags look really cool!!