Lucille Chi
“Lawrence Ohlman III, MBA candidate at University of Toledo, never imagined he would be repurposing part of his student loan, starting a unique sustainable products company and marketing the first FDA approved 100% natural tableware…” Ohlman says he took the housing portion of the loan, to finance the business, as he explains: ” I moved back in with my parents and started the EcoLogic Products company, that’s what MBA’s are supposed to do; I just advanced the timeline a little! “
Made primarily from bamboo fibers; the raw material is powdered and mixed with bio-based polymers at high temperature to form a collection of sustainable (biodegradable at the end of life) and durable dinnerware. It is clear to me this company truly follows a Cradle to Cradle product philosophy and here is why:
- After a long functional life, these objects can be re-used as a plant pot and saucer or simply composted back to the earth. Significantly minimizing eco-footprints and encouraging mindfulness on how we impact our planet’s delicate ecosystems.
- Includes packaging printed with biodegradable soy inks- minimizing our environmental impact through our sustainable packaging initiative. The designs make for great gifts as they are.
- A nice range of functional tableware, The Eco Collection is fine enough for formal occasions yet resilient enough everyday use.
Perhaps the Eco Collection will expand this to building materials? or furniture? The Eco-Collection is already receiving a huge response from buyers and word has spread around the housewares industry. “Orders have been received from many regional and several large national retailers. Ecologic’s first product, the Eco Collection, a line of attractive, FDA approved, earth based high quality daily use tableware, will be in retail stores in time for Christmas.”
Ohlman discovered the new tableware technology while on a Spring Break abroad. “Of all the places in the world, I found that the Chinese government had commissioned research to develop a true cradle to cradle technology to reduce carbon emissions produced by slash and burn farming techniques,” says Ohlman.
“This technology converted these natural plant fibers into bio-based resins, resulting in Plastic Starch Materials (PMSs), which can be utilized to manufacture objects that resemble our good old familiar plastic products, such as tableware and a host of other products. The Eco Collection™, a line of sustainable, ecochic tableware is just the beginning of wide range of earth conscious products soon to be offered by EcoLogic.”
Through his work in sales in the family greenhouse business and his education at the Unversity of Toledo’s MBA program, Ohlman is emerging as one of the awesome new ecologically focused entrepreneurs, “bringing business sense to sensitivity about the environment…”
EcoLogic is also a proud member of One Percent for the Planet. Pictured above is a collage I put together from their sites, to learn more about EcoLogic’s adventures check out his blog.
