"Green" cloth diapers are coming back
March 27, 2008
Disposable diapers have become a roughly $5.7 billion business, but cloth diapering is making a comeback. Here is an interesting diaper product that is not only fashionable, but environmentally friendly. They’re called gDiapers, and consist of a washable, cotton outer pant and a plastic free flushable refill. They are made of breathable material just like sports clothing, and that is what keeps the skin from getting diaper rash.
The makers encourage parents to toss flushable refills because they’re plastic-free, or garden compost the wet ones. They’ll break down in 50-150 days.
Today's new cloth diapers are different from the ones that I struggled with years ago. While approximately half of cloth users still rely on fold-and-pin diapers provided by laundry services, new designs with cutesy names like Fuzzi Bunz, bumGenius, Kissaluvs and Happy Heinys have become enormously popular with parents who want to do the right thing for the environment.
Velcro, buttons and snaps have replaced pins, and the diapers are fitted with elastic around the openings to hold tight around flailing legs. In place of old-fashioned rubber panties, the new cloths use water-resistant covers made of merino wool, nylon or polyurethane laminate.
It will be interesting to see how the disposable diaper industry responds to these next generation diapers!
