Little Earth Baby: Big Earth Passions

by Emma Tattersall

This December we wanted to shine a little spotlight on the people, organisations and gifts that really do give something back. Christmas doesn't have to just be about giving, it can also be a time to really think about how we can all give back.

As many of you will have noticed our former LWL Shelf Editor Phoebe is currently on her maternity leave. This means that not only can ask the really probing questions on childbirth to someone I know and love (like what did an episiotomy feel like? Have you tried your own milk?), but I am now also fighting a constant urge to purchase all items of Lilliputian proportion for her son (aka the new love of my life) Ernie.

And it was as I was partaking in this favourite new past time of mine, that I stumbled across Little Earth Baby. This brand is on a mission to inspire you to make informed choices about the fabrics and ingredients in your babies' products, and to provide a wider choice of natural options when gifting to your delicious new favourite baby friends.

For us it's not just about our products. It's about building a community to help change the way consumers shop for the better. Emma Bianco, Founder

When I caught up with Emma on Monday her message rang loud and true. When she became a new mother, she expected that the baby world would be highly regulated but instead she was shocked to find how synthetic and toxic so many of the products were. The majority of toys and items on offer for babies contain some of the most toxic plastics around, be that EVA foam, Polyester or PVC. And as babies grow and develop, they suck, chew and nibble anything and everything in sight.

So while we worry about the micro-plastics that the fish in the ocean are ingesting, what about these gooey faced cherubs that are sucking on a polyester comforter ingesting thousands of plastic and chemical particles which their little bodies can't dispose of?

For Emma this wasn’t just about creating awareness for the problem – she wanted to be a part of the solution as well. And so the brand Little Earth Baby was born.

Their products are 98% biodegradable (something about zips on sleep suits and the regulation around them that means this plastic, albeit recycled, robs them of the 100% mark) and offer a pioneering range of natural and non-toxic baby products.

And not polluting the oceans was just one part of Emma’s mission. Little Earth Baby wants to play a role in cleaning it up too. Their Cleaner Ocean Pledge means that with every item bought they’re working to remove plastics from our shores and oceans on your behalf. How I hear you ask? Little Earth Baby donate a percentage of revenue from each purchase to the charity Surfers Against Sewage (SAS). For each sleeping bag sold, around 33 grams of plastic will be removed from the oceans, that’s around 3 plastic bottles or 110 plastic straws. Buy a blanket, and 25 grams will be gone, equivalent to five whale-clogging, turtle-smothering shopping bags.

SAS are a grassroots movement tackling plastic pollution on the UK’s beaches. Hailing from Cornwall, where Emma has holidayed all her life, they organise beach clean-ups and help to spread awareness and education about plastic pollution and what can be done to fight this important issue. Whether it’s through Mass Unwraps at your local supermarket, Beach Cleans or working with a local school to go plastic free there are loads of ways you can get involved.

So this Christmas I’m comforted to know that Ernie will be getting a non-toxic, bio-degradable and super stylish emerald green blanket (spoiler alert, sorry Pheebs) and that with this we will also be supporting a little brand that believes in not only raising awareness about a very big problem but providing part of the solution for it.

A little baby brand, making big earth waves.