Dear Alison,
What do you think of the new Green Works Natural Cleaners from Clorox?-
Jen H., Sacramento, CA
I went to the website that Clorox has set up to support their Green Works products. I don’t generally trust a big company that makes “green” claims simply because they usually only care about the bottom line. If I were making assumptions I’d say that Clorox isn’t making this product because they are hoping to go green but because going green is popular right now and they want to tap that market.
That being said, I was unable to find any reviews from credible sources on their new product. They do a good job listing their standards for this product on the website and they do a mediocre job listing the ingredients. Here is a list of ingredients for their all purpose cleaner and my thoughts on each:
Coconut based cleaning agent (nonionic surfactant)
I have done quite a bit of research on coconut based surfactants and they do seem to be a better choice as far as surfactants go. Plant based is always better than silicone based!
Corn based ethanol
Everyone is so busy talking about ethanol for gas so I couldn’t find anything on using it as a cleanser.
Fragrance with essential lemon oil
I don’t trust this one. “Fragrance” can mean any ingredient. By law, they do not have to state exactly what they are using as a fragrance. Because it says “with” essential lemon oil I am suspicious that they use something toxic and then are adding a little essential lemon oil to it to make it sound good.
Filtered water
They could have left the water unfiltered. Just makes it sound “clean” but doesn’t really matter.
Contains no phosphorous or bleach
Good!
This is a better choice than a regular household cleanser, however, if you are trying to “Go Green” in the cleaning department I would recommend a more reliable and earth friendly company such as Seventh Generation, Earth Friendly Products, ECOS,Citra-Solv or a brand you might find in the health or “organic” section of your grocery store.
Your partner in health,
Alison
Comments
I love Seventh Generation!
said Sandra, 222 days ago