Whether you plan on ringing in the New Year with a simple kiss or something a little more intimate, it’s always important to be prepared. Make Little Dicky proud and buy a condom brand that is both healthy and safe!
Industry: Health & Wellness
Certifications: B Corps Certified, Fair Trade Certified, Vegan Certified, Non-GMO, FSC Certified, Made Safe Certified
Location: Burlington, VT
Women In Power
Started by Jeffrey Hollender, the founder of Seventh Generation, and his daughter Meika Hollender, Sustain looks to revolutionize the condom industry by providing women with an alternative to mass condom brands. Surprisingly, women purchase about 40 percent of the condoms sold in the US every year. This is why Sustain uses a voice and tone that speaks to women and the issues they care about, making the company unlike anything else on the market today. They are owned by 50 percent women and through their 10 Percent for Women program, 10 percent of profits are distributed to organizations that provide reproductive healthcare and family planning services to low income women in the US.
Sustain believes that buying and carrying condoms should be something women are proud to do. It’s about women taking control of their sexual health.
No Cancers Here
Keep carcinogens away from your naughty bits! In 2010, the World Health Organization and the United Nations Population Fund asked that manufacturers begin to eliminate the presence of nitrosamines, a class of carcinogenic chemicals found in many latex condoms.
Despite the request, many companies failed to take the message seriously. In September 2014, the Reproductive Health Technologies Project (RHTP) released the results of an independent study on latex condoms sold in the United States. The study found that only two major condom brands were free of detectable nitrosamines across their entire product line, Sustain being one of them.
There are thousands and thousands of toxic chemicals that we come into contact with every day. Limiting our exposure to these chemicals can allow us to not only live a healthier life, but supporting businesses who are responsible encourages other businesses to also be responsible, giving us a healthier environment of consumption. Plus keeping cancer causing toxins away from our reproductive organs seems like it should be a no brainer.
If you want to learn more about nitrosamines in condoms, read the RHTP report and share it with the people you care about most.
Fairly Sourced Rubbers
Fair Trade is an important thing to consider when browsing for new products. Where does the product come from? Are the workers cared for properly, what are their working conditions, are they paid a fair wage? These are important questions to ask because they help the consumer understand the brands motives. The difference is taking advantage of workers and the community versus considering the workers environment and providing them a healthy working experience.
Sustain sources their latex from southern India in one of the most sustainable rubber tree plantations in the world. The plantation provides its 180 rubber tappers and their families a quality, fair working experience. Beyond banning child labor and paying reasonable wages, the plantation provides education and healthcare to the entire community. The rubber industry has a disreputable history of abusive practices including child labor, and the bulldozing of indigenous cultures for new plantations as the price of rubber continues to increase. Sustains plantation is a bright spot in an often dark field.
Fairly Made Rubbers
Sustain also sources their manufacturing to India. The facility there has natural sunlight in every room. A portion of their energy comes from a solar array on the roof. The workers are unionized and able to negotiate with management for wages that are significantly higher than at the average factory in India. The factory also has an AIDS awareness program, where they educate adults in 600 villages of a district in South India about the disease and how to prevent it. Needless to say Sustain and their manufacturer make for a good match.
You can shop Sustain products on their – website – or through – Amazon –
Triple Bottom Line 