With billion of products on the market claiming to be organic or eco-friendly, shopping for sustainable products can be a hit-or-miss affair. GoodGuide, a free app for the iPhone, wants to be your shopping buddy and help you get your hands on products and do more than just pay lip service to environmental responsibility.
Next time you’re in the cosmetic aisle and can’t figure out the safest lipstick brand to buy, whip out your iPhone, fire up the GoodGuide app, and snap a picture of the barcode. You’ll get instant detailed info on the lipstick’s effect on health, the planet, and whether it’s produced in a socially responsible manner.
GoodGuide doesn’t just limit information to cosmetics – categories include Food, Household Cleaners, Personal Care, and Toys. In fact, there are more than 65,000 products in the app’s database, with more being added with every update.
GoodGuide is an incredibly handy app to have in your purse while shopping. Indeed, I’m disappointed that I couldn’t find similar ones for BlackBerry and Android mobile devices – if they exist, let me know in the comments. This is exactly the kind of information that’s great to have on the fly, especially if you encounter an unfamiliar or new product on the store shelf.
Until manufacturers put this kind of information on their packaging voluntarily, GoodGuide is a terrific way to figure out if the products your buying are in line with your goals for environmentally sustainable living.