In the connected world we live in, that is also facing an existential climate crisis, there should be transparency about the sustainability of the products and services we use. There should be clear answers to questions like: 

- How far has a product travelled before it gets to a consumer? 

- What kind of packaging materials were used throughout the supply chain? 

- How sustainably was it produced? 

Unfortunately, there is a serious lack of information and accountability regarding the sustainability of consumer products. Without that knowledge, consumers cannot make informed choices and the industry cannot improve at the pace it needs to.

It’s hard to fix what you can’t measure.

And the downward cycle continues - more packaging waste, more miles logged and more unsustainable production practices - all taking fossil fuels. 

Trashless aims to change this - researching, updating and presenting data, information and analytics - both for its products and services, and over a period of time, for all consumer products and services.

Distance Score  

Three elements go into the Distance Score given to each product: 

Distance

This is the distance in miles from the location where the product is produced to the Trashless warehouse. 

Distance Quotient

The longer the distance between where the product is produced and the Trashless warehouse, the lower the quotient: 

Distance: Quotient 

0-50 miles: 10

51-250 miles: 9

251-500 miles: 8

501-1,000 miles: 7

1,001-2,000 miles: 6

2,001-3,000 miles: 5

3,001-4,000 miles: 4

4,001-5,000 miles: 3

5,001-7,500 miles: 2

7,501-10,000 miles: 1

>10,001 miles: 0

Net Weight

Weight of the product in lbs, not including the packaging. 

Distance Score = Distance Quotient X Net Weight 

Notes:

- Currently the Report does not take into account distance travelled by ingredients that go into a product. We hope to extend the report to that, though visibility into those complex supply chains is difficult or even impossible. 

- The Report does not take into account the distance travelled between the Trashless warehouse and the end customer. We will be doing that in the future - making the number dynamic based on your location. 

Packaging Score 

Three elements go into the Packaging Score given to each product: 

Units of Packaging Waste Prevented 

This number reflects how many pieces of single-use packaging are prevented when you receive an item through Trashless. Let’s take for example, granola. The granola you typically purchase at the grocery store is packaged in a plastic bag, which is then packaged in a box. Hence this number for granola bought from Trashless will be 2 - because it prevented 2 pieces of packaging from entering the waste stream.  

Volume 

Packaging material used for a product depends on the volume of the item it is being used to package. This element indicates the volume of the product in fl.oz. 

Factor

Used to normalize the final Points score. 

Packaging Score = Units of Packaging Waste Prevented X Volume X Factor 

Notes: 

- This does not take into account packaging materials used for the transportation of bulk products from the producer to Trashless. 

Production Sustainability 

This is a score out of 10 given to the producer of each product based on their sustainability practices. This score takes into account:

- Farming practices - conventional, organic or regenerative. 

- Use of natural resources such as water. 

- Energy use and if it is from a renewable source. 

- Use of machinery, and their carbon footprint. 

- Humane treatment of animals. 

This score is accompanied by a verbal description of the producer’s sustainability practices (or lack thereof), including how their products get to Trashless. 

Coming Soon in the Future 

These scores will be combined with prices of the products, to form the basis of Green Points - a Rewards Program, but with a twist - one that enables community members to donate their points to producers of their choice to fund specific sustainability projects. Stay tuned!

The format of this report is in Beta. We are looking for feedback and suggestions from our community and beyond to improve its structure. Please write to us at: support@trashless.com.