Furniture Made From Waste Material

Many of us are starting to understand that we need to go green and increase the efficiency of our everyday lives. As more news of environmental degradation, human-caused environmental change, and resource depletion floods the news waves, individuals are voting with their dollars by making purchases that are in line with their values.

From solar powered garage doors, used goods, and items made out of recycled materials, many are making changes in their lives that make a big difference for the planet. We are also coming to the conclusion that we need to rethink the way we look at waste. Waste has to go somewhere, and too often, that somewhere is a landfill filled with compostable and recyclable materials.

Herso, a furniture company based in Holland, takes the concept of waste very seriously as well as creating a sustainable business. Herso’s business model is something that those who support the environment are likely to envy and wish to see used in more businesses.

The company’s furniture is made from waste material; the metal they use in their furniture comes from old hog pens and other sources, and they use reclaimed wood in the design of their furniture. The designs are beautiful and a Herso table is most certainly to be a conversation piece should you have a piece of this furniture in your home.

But Herso does not stop at using reclaimed materials. They use natural glues and varnishes, and they find uses for all their waste. By-products are used in a variety of other applications from kitty litter to biofuels. This creates a closed-loop resource cycle. In short, there is no waste.

All materials used are reclaimed and all the by-products of the process are used for other processes. Herso takes it a step further in two ways: first, by committing to planting trees for every piece of furniture sold and second, by operating at off-peak hours. The process of creating furniture can be energy intensive, so as a means of reducing the strain on the grid, the company performs most energy intensive tasks during non-peak hours of the working day.

The company takes being sustainable and having a closed-loop resource cycle very seriously, understanding that there is no such thing as “away.” They have also illustrated the important concept that there is no such thing as waste. In nature, as in Herso’s process, all waste is food or a resource that can be utilized by something else.

Join in the discussion in the comments below and/or share the piece.

Photo credit: Some rights reserved by juhansonin on Flickr.

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Chris Keenan (23 Posts)

Chris Keenan is a green and general blog writer. He writes for many sites including his personal food blog.

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