Green Pens & More for Back To School

Green pens and more, biodegradable and otherwise environmentally friendly school supplies, are becoming extremely common and popular among school kids.

Many kids are more interested in green supplies than in having a Batman lunch box or Hannah Montana pencil box for example. This is a far cry from  a mere very few years ago.

Just a decade ago recycled paper became a big deal, and now in 2010 and beyond, biodegradable is the big term. Manufacturers have taken notice, especially since the back to school market is a 55 billion dollar marker. That’s BILLION, in case you missed it. I know my wife has started shopping for school months in advance for my 5, 6, and 10 year old.

Almost everything seems to be available as biodegradable, including pens, pencils, pencil cases, rulers, school binders, page protectors, project folders, and more. Originally these were available from smaller manufacturers, but as their popularity is blossoming, larger manufacturers are taking notice. In general smaller manufacturers seem happy, as larger manufacturers will bring more attention to these types of products and hopefully raise everyone’s sales. As the saying goes, “A rising tide lifts all boats.”

One of the latest into this category is industry giant Paper Mate, with biodegradable pens and mechanical pencils. The packaging is extremely interesting as it screams biodegradable almost as large as the Paper Mate logo and features a green earth with a green tree growing out of it, and the back has detailed composting directions. Some components are not compostable and need to be removed. It is expected to be among Paper Mates top ten back to school products. In all seriousness, ball point pens are convenient but not at all green, with their widespread use of plastics and more. Plastics can last 100 years or much longer in the environment; we really do not know.

This pen is made of a bio plastic called Mirel and made from corn sugar (a by product of corn wet milling). It’s available in standard colors like black, blue, and red, but for some reason not green! It is as durable as their standard pens, and the packaging is 100 percent recyclable.

There is some concern among consumers that biodegradable may mean lower quality. This is one reason that Paper Mate has positioned their pen as a premium pen instead of an economy pen, with a list price of $1.70. It will only biodegrade when exposed to heat and moisture like in a compost pile, and will not break down in stores, warehouses, or home.

Green is hot, and this is expected to be a growing category in school and other supplies for a long time. In a few years, a significant portion of the back to school market may be green, environmentally friendly, and biodegradable.