WE TKARE AND SOCIAL GOOD
One of the products we use the most at home are detergents. To clean floors, bathrooms, mirrors... it is in every home and is used quite frequently, but have we stopped to think about the toxicity and the environmental and health damage that these products can cause? For many years, products have been created to be efficient (either to remove stains or to make the house smell good), and to do so, all kinds of chemical elements of dubious environmental reputation have been used. Fortunately, not all projects are like this, and there are those who have developed them with people's health and environmental care in mind. Today we bring you We-Tkare, a company led by Javier Otero, who has developed sustainable detergents that he is presenting to us today. Let's get started!
What is WeTKare and what motivated you to start the project?
WeTKare (We take care) could be translated as we take care. It was created with the intention of unifying sustainable products, not only ecological. Recycling is not enough.
Why did you decide to enter the world of sustainable detergent products?
In that search and after talking to multiple companies I did not find eco-friendly and sustainable cleaning products.
So I opted for laboratories that could offer this possibility. Many said no or that it was not the right time, until I found a laboratory, to my surprise, with international presence that had what I was looking for and was willing to support this project.
What are the major environmental and human health problems associated with non-environmentally friendly cleaning products?
There are several problems. From a health point of view, most of them have aggressive components that can damage the skin and cause allergic reactions. They also tend to emit volatile components that are inhalable and go straight to the lungs and bloodstream, as well as deceiving our brain.
Environmental problems. We can start with the large amount of chemical spills that are dumped and end up in the soil, rivers and oceans. An example: during the pandemic, it was recommended that the use of bleach be reduced because of the problems it was beginning to cause in purifying the water.
Almost all conventional and many ecological cleaning products are composed of 90% water and only 10% is what cleans, i.e. we transport millions of liters of water drying rivers and springs and emit a huge amount of CO2, when water is transported by itself.
And finally we come to plastic. Every year about 380 million tons are produced and barely 10% is recycled.
Last but not least, we can mention marketing. Nowadays we have been taught that to clean your house you need at least 6 products (kitchen cleaner, bathroom cleaner, bleach, furniture cleaner, glass cleaner and a multi-surface cleaner just in case).
What makes your products sustainable?
At WeTKare we offer an alternative to all these problems by being based on enzymes, living microorganisms that degrade organic matter.
Our concentrated formula allows us to transport only the part that cleans so that the user only uses the water he needs when he needs it and we also demonstrate that it is possible to clean your entire home with a single product, just by dissolving the right dose.
One bottle of WeTKare Multi-Surfaces (1L) and dissolving 1 Dose (20ml) in one of our sprayers provides up to 50 bottles of bathroom and kitchen cleaning of other cleaners or 100 bottles if we dissolve ½ dose. This can add up to 1 year's worth of cleaning products in many homes.
WeTKare Floor Cleaner with 250ml can last up to 250 buckets of water to clean the floor.
Your products use bio-enzymes as an essential element, what are they and how are they used to create cleaning products?
There is a great variety of enzymes, each and every one of them with special characteristics. The laboratory has selected the most suitable enzymes and, thanks to biotechnology, their degreasing, sanitizing and cleaning powers have been enhanced.
In addition, you avoid the use of single-use packaging by opting for reusable packaging. How have you achieved this?
We have opted for two ways. First, a concentrated formula in a bottle that guarantees prolonged use over time. Here we eliminated single-use bottles and the shipping of single-use tablets and their corresponding packaging and repetitive shipments.
Secondly, our reusable containers are made of aluminum, an almost infinitely recyclable material.
What has been the most difficult challenge you have had in terms of sustainability and how did you manage to overcome it?
That people become aware, both those who care about ecology and those who don't, that a more sustainable lifestyle is possible and beneficial for everyone.
Yes, WeTKare requires an investment, but in the long run it saves money and improves our living conditions.
That is the biggest challenge, and we are working on it.
Where do you expect to see your project in 1-2 years?
It would be great to see it all over the world, and I don't mean that everyone would use it, but that it would be present in many places, that it would improve consumption habits and encourage the production of more sustainable products.
What is social good for you?
Social Good has a lot in common with how the WeTKare project started, a place, a meeting point for all those ideas, projects, products, services and most importantly people who want our planet to remain a fantastic place to live.