Is your company currently purchasing “green” office furniture supplies? San Diego businesses have more options now than ever before when it comes to outfitting employee workstations. From the non-toxic cleaning solutions used to wipe down your office furniture to the stacking desk trays you use for your in/out boxes, you’ve got plenty of choices. Of course, just because a product is labeled as eco-friendly doesn’t mean it is doing that much for the environment. An inspection of the label/packaging will help you figure out if you are really making an sustainable purchasing decision.

For example, you will want to take a close look at the percentage of post-consumer recycled content being used. Materials that are reclaimed as a normal part of the manufacturing process are referred to as pre-consumer recycled content. A company may have been reclaiming raw material byproducts for decades to boost efficiency and decrease costs. They can slap a label on their package saying they are “green”, but this doesn’t indicate a real change in their normal way of doing business.

In contrast, a company that is using post-consumer materials is often having a direct impact on landfill waste reduction. Plus, these manufacturers are supporting recycling companies that create jobs for workers who collect recyclable items. So, generally the higher the percentage of post-consumer recycled content, the greater the benefit to the environment. Of course, this only holds true as long as the process used to clean and reconstitute the post-consumer material to make it ready for production is eco-friendly and doesn’t create toxic byproducts. A little background research goes a long way in helping you determine whether a manufacturer is really as green as they claim.