Christmas in Ireland unofficially begins tonight – it’s The Late Late Toy Show! Now that your Edible EcoStraws have arrived, we would like to help you enjoy your purchase in the most perfect way. Here is our recipe for The Best Hot Chocolate ever!

You need:

565ml/1 pint of milk

4 Tablespoons of good quality drinking chocolate

1 handful of mini marshmallows or 1 Tablespoon of whipped cream (per mug)

1-2 Chocolate Flavoured Edible EcoStraws (per mug)

[Adults can also include a measure of Irish cream liqueur if they’re feeling particularly festive!]

Method:

Place milk in a saucepan and bring to a simmer (not a boil).

Add the chocolate powder & whisk to a fluffy froth.

Pour into mugs & top with marshmallows or whipped cream as desired.

[The optional cream liqueur sneaks in at this point!]

Enjoy with an Edible EcoStraw or two.

(We recommend Chocolate or Strawberry flavour)

Finally, we love to hear from all our eco-customers so , don’t forget to send us your pics on Facebook, Twitter or Instagram.

EcoGirl x

#gogreenin2019

We are EcoStraws; an Irish company with a passion for the planet.

EcoStraws.ie supply a complete range of eco-friendly reusable straws and 100% biodegradable disposable straws, as well as other associated products. Our stock of reusable eco-friendly straws include Stainless Steel, Glass, Bamboo and Silicone straws. Our biodegradable EcoStraws are available in Wheat, PLA, and Paper, and we even stock Edible Straws so you can have your straw and eat it too!

By choosing our products you are making a difference. By sharing our message you are helping to educate. EcoStraws/EcoCups help us to live in harmony with the natural world around us. Our ethos helps us to protect it from damage and destruction.

Why not join our mailing list right here –

Lord Howe:

On the other side of the world, 400 miles off the coast of Australia, lies Lord Howe island. A beautiful and remote location with pristine unspoilt landscapes and clear, coral-rich waters. One would imagine that this tiny island of subtropical forests and sandy beaches would be untouched by 21st century pollution and free of the filth of careless consumers, however, the opposite is very much true. Lord Howe Island is an example of how the actions of the rest of the world can have an effect on even the most unspoilt locations and it’s marine life in particular.

Deepsea Landfill:

One of the unique species of sea bird that lives on Lord Howe is the Flesh-footed Shearwater & a recent BBC documentary called Drowning in Plastic, drew attention to the horrors being inflicted on these marine birds because of single use plastics. Young Shearwater chicks, which cannot fly, are being fed a diet of plastic by their parents. The parents mistake small bits of plastic, for squid and little fish. They swallow plastic at sea, return to the nest & regurgitate it for the hatchlings. Some chicks, as young as 3 mths old had up to 250 pieces of plastic in their stomachs, leaving them malnourished & too heavy to fly. Quite honestly it was sickening to watch.

But where is the plastic coming from? Chicks stomachs revealed bottle caps, tetra packs, pieces of straws, even plastic bags; all single use plastics which are discarded by humans without a single thought. Plastic bags look like jelly fish, small pieces look like fish eggs & marine life is unable to tell the difference. Our oceans flow from one into the other, creating giant plastic rafts which travel the globe causing mayhem in their wake.

The Future Of Fishing:

I’m not usually an emotional person when it comes to tv, movies & especially not documentaries but what came next, actually made me cry. Some of the giant rivers of our planet, The Nile, The Yangtze and The Ganges have become plastic arteries. One of the worst is The Citarum river in Indonesia. Up until recently this river was a source of food, a livelihood for the people who fished it. Now it is a dump. Fish too full of toxic plastic to be eaten. Men now scour the plastic raft, sifting through it to collect any plastic of value which may be valuable enough to sell  to factories. They used to be fishermen.

The Wild Atlantic Way:

But why should we care about the plight of fishermen in Indonesia? What do islands on the other side of the world have to do with us? The simple answer is, everything. Plastic pollution is everywhere. Just take a walk along Plassey Bank from the University of Limerick towards the city. On any given day there is evidence of plastic discarded upstream which has found itself scattered along the bank. This litter inevitably ends up in the Atlantic Ocean. How long before The Wild Atlantic Way and it’s marine life become victims of plastic pollution?

The Time Is Now:

What is wrong with us as humans that we believe we can live disposable lives without consequence? How can we reconcile the use of single use plastics with the horrific results now evident in ecosystems across the world? The time has come for real change…ban single use plastics, switch to eco-friendly solutions & biodegradable alternatives. EcoStraws can provide you with numerous solutions, including bamboo straws, stainless steel, silicone straws, paper straws, even edible straws. There are many more options on our website Ecostraws.ie. The straw is only the start of our campaign against single use plastics but it is a start and as we know every little change helps. Remember , there is no planet B.

EcoGirl. x

#GoGreenIn2019

We are EcoStraws; an Irish company with a passion for the planet.

EcoStraws.ie supply a complete range of eco-friendly reusable straws and 100% biodegradable disposable straws, as well as other associated products. Our stock of reusable eco-friendly straws include Stainless Steel, Glass, Bamboo and Silicone straws. Our biodegradable EcoStraws are available in Wheat, PLA, and Paper, and we even stock Edible Straws so you can have your straw and eat it too!

By choosing our products you are making a difference. By sharing our message you are helping to educate. EcoStraws/EcoCups help us to live in harmony with the natural world around us. Our ethos helps us to protect it from damage and destruction.

Why not join our mailing list right here –

The Final Straw:

A World Heritage Site:

I was lucky enough recently to have the opportunity to tick a box on my bucket-list of life’s ambitions. No, I didn’t hike to Machu Picchu or scale The Great Wall, but I did visit The Whit Sunday islands. While there, I had the chance to snorkle for several hours in The Great Barrier Reef. In all honesty, I felt like I was a fish in Sir David Attenborough’s Blue Planet! It was spectacular to be in such close proximity to marine species I’ve only ever seen on TV.

The Great Barrier Reef is the single biggest structure made by living organisms on our planet. It can be seen from space, is home to thousands of unique species including clownfish, turtles and whales, and has over 400 different types of coral. And we are destroying it!

The Human Effect:

Yes, this magnificent natural wonder, unique to the East Coast of Australia is dying and has lost more than half of it’s coral cover since 1985. It made me so sad to think that something I had enjoyed as one of the most breathtaking moments of my life may not exist in 30 years time.

Our tour guide Brody explained that along with the warming of the oceans, pollution, particularly by single-use plastics was one of the greatest threats to the reef. And although East Coast Australia is on the other side of the world, it got me thinking; if single use plastic is destroying the Pacific Ocean, it’s surely having a similar effect on the Atlantic Ocean. Brody encouraged us to be Eco-aware when we went about our daily lives and to be mindful of our habits when purchasing and so I began to open my eyes.

A Plastic Problem:

I began to notice single-use plastic everywhere; the wrapper on my bread, the lid on my coffee cup, the plastic on my lunchtime sandwich, the straw in my afternoon smoothie.  I could go on, but the list is endless. We assume that all plastics are recyclable, but the reality is that very often they are not. Straws in particular, are made from polypropylene which is not widely recycled and more often than not single use plastic straws end up in landfill sites, drains, rivers & ultimately our oceans.

Eco-Friendly:

This new awareness got me thinking. What can I do? How can I spread the Eco-message coming from the East Coast of Australia? How can I help save The Great Barrier Reef or The Wild Atlantic Way? My children & grandchildren should have the opportunity to swim with the turtles like I did. So, I started to make a few small changes.

I have gotten in to the habit of choosing fruit & vegetables that are not store packaged, buying bread that comes in a paper bag, carrying my EcoCup in my handbag and refusing plastic straws in my drinks.

My new EcoStraw is a permanent fixture on my keyring. It pops out wherever I go & has turned out to be a great conversation starter. Everyone is curious, from taxi drivers, to bar staff and even a couple of Airforce pilots from California.

The EcoStraw is compact, stylish and easy to clean and because the inside tube is made from silicone it’s suitable for all drinks, hot & cold, and has no lingering aftertaste. It’s my gadget!

Every time I use the EcoStraw, I am reminded of the video of the turtle with the straw in it’s nose. Why should innocent animals suffer because of the careless actions of humans?

I’m hopeful that by making small changes, single-use plastics will become a thing of the past. It’s time to save our oceans and protect its’ species. We know we can do it, one straw, one lid, one cup at a time.

Be The Change:

Now that you know about my  EcoMentality, why not join me in taking responsibility for reducing our reliance on single use plastics? Switch to an EcoStraw today and play your part in saving the planet one turtle at a time. Visit our website ecostraws.ie, and check out the amazing range of EcoStraws available to you. We would love to hear your comments across any of our social media channels.

EcoGirl. x

#GoGreenIn2019

We are EcoStraws; an Irish company with a passion for the planet.

EcoStraws.ie supply a complete range of eco-friendly reusable straws and 100% biodegradable disposable straws, as well as other associated products. Our stock of reusable eco-friendly straws include Stainless Steel, Glass, Bamboo and Silicone straws. Our biodegradable EcoStraws are available in Wheat, PLA, and Paper, and we even stock Edible Straws so you can have your straw and eat it too!

By choosing our products you are making a difference. By sharing our message you are helping to educate. EcoStraws/EcoCups help us to live in harmony with the natural world around us. Our ethos helps us to protect it from damage and destruction.

Why not join our mailing list right here –