Need to Know
29 : 04 : 19

New York – A new direct-to-consumer brand has launched with a range of cleaning products that eliminate the need for single-use plastic packaging.

Sold as a refillable system, Blueland’s Clean Up Kit includes three reusable bottles and three different cleaning tablets for multi-surface, glass and mirror, and bathroom usage. The tablets can be dissolved in water to create non-toxic household cleaners and will retail for £1.50 ($2, €1.80) per refill. In future, the company also plans to release other sustainable cleaning and personal care products.

‘When people hear eco-friendly, they assume the products will be less effective, more expensive and more work,’ says Sarah Paiji Yoo, CEO and co-founder of Blueland. ‘We're flipping this on its head with cutting-edge formulas, readily biodegradable packaging, and money-saving $2 refill tablets.’ In a similar vein, our Home Cleaning Market explores design-led, eco-friendly start-ups who are transforming the image of household cleaning.

US – The start-up is disrupting the breakfast category with a range of grain-free, high-protein cereals in child-like flavours.

With its playful branding and nostalgic feel, Magic Spoon is targeting health-conscious consumers for whom cereal was a favourite childhood treat. The product finds a new middle ground between high-sugar cereals and their bland but healthy counterparts. ‘We looked at the current market and noticed that most 'healthy' breakfast options were really sleepy and dull,’ say the brand’s founders, Gabi Lewis and Greg Sewitz.

Launching with four flavours (fruity, cinnamon, frosted and cocoa), the brand uses a combination of monk fruit, stevia and allulose instead of sugar, and a blend of whey and milk proteins to boost protein content. Its cereals will initially only be available to purchase online, with a monthly subscription costing £27 ($35, €31).

Magic Spoon is not the only brand creating healthy but indulgent product types. Chobani recently launched a line of healthy yoghurts for children in a variety of candy-inspired flavours.

Paris – The project will help blind and visually impaired children learn Braille in a playful environment.

Lego Braille Bricks will be moulded with studs reflecting the Braille alphabet and are fully compatible for all types of play, meaning visually impaired children are no longer excluded from games. The bricks can also be played with by sighted teachers, students and family members.

While the product is currently being tested in European markets, the full kit is expected to launch in 2020 and will be distributed free of charge to a number of institutions. The kit will contain 250 braille bricks covering the alphabet, numbers, math symbols and inspiration for interactive games.

Brands are finally turning their attention to the needs of disabled children, who have been underserved by product manufacturers. Earlier this month, Target launched a range of autism-friendly furniture as part of its children’s homeware range.

Key findings from a report on the state of America’s air quality show that between 2015-2017, many US cities measured increased levels of year-round particle pollution. The American Lung Association’s annual report, The State of Air, shows that more than 141m Americans – or 43% of the population – are breathing unhealthy levels of ozone or particulate matter pollution.

Los Angeles ranks as the country’s worst city for ozone pollution, while other Californian cities such as Sacramento, San Diego and the San Jose-San Francisco region were also among the 10 worst.

‘There is no clearer sign that we are facing new challenges than air pollution levels that have broken records tracked for the past twenty years,’ Harold Wimmer, president of the American Lung Association, said in a statement. For more on how the air we breathe is becoming a key consumer concern, explore our Smog Life vertical.