Natural cleaning products gaining in popularity
By NANCY FOSTER
New Hampshire Union Leader Correspondent
Sunday, July 22, 2007
New Hampshire Union Leader Correspondent
Sunday, July 22, 2007
WILTON – Though homemade cleaning supplies using all-natural ingredients are relatively simple to make, some people prefer the convenience of ready-made cleaners. These days, a wide variety of natural cleaners can be found on the shelves of both organic food stores and most mainstream grocery stores.
There are several common brands of natural cleaning supplies, including Seventh Generation, Method, Earth Friendly Products, and Dragonfly Organix that are popping up in major retail stores around the country.
Many of the cleaners incorporate ingredients like citrus peel, salt, baking soda, and coconut into their products.
Dragonfly Organix, one of the newer product lines on the market, uses natural enzymes to "eat" the molecules that make up stains, dirt and odors.
Mark McEvoy, CFO of the Raynham, Mass.-based company said that the enzymes, which live in nature, are sort of like little Pacman characters that chase after grease and grime and destroy it.
The popularity of Dragonfly and other natural cleaning products has exploded in the past few years, McEvoy said.
"The non-food organic business was late in coming," McEvoy said, "but it has grown considerably each year. Business is booming for us." Dragonfly products are available at grocery stores like Shaw's and Hannaford, but the demand for the products is spreading, McEvoy said.
"We're soon going to be in Stop and Shop and Whole Foods," he said, "but we're also going to be in other parts of the country at PigglyWiggly and other grocery chains. It's really starting to mushroom."