Long before zero-waste living was making headlines, U-Konserve was creating products to help people live a zero-waste lifestyle. The company was founded by two friends who believed that small changes can have a huge impact on the global movement to protect our planet. After the birth of her daughter, Chance Claxton became increasingly concerned about the environment and wanted to make it easy for parents to reduce the plastic baggies, juice boxes and packaged foods piling up in landfills. In 2008 the founders created the first zero-waste lunch kit for elementary schools, and the new venture was born.
The innovative lunch kits spurred an entirely new lifestyle for thousands of families looking to tread lightly on the planet. The reusable concept caught on, and more products were developed. What started as a resource for school children quickly became a full line of zero-waste food-storage essentials for the whole family at home and on the go.
After more than a decade of growth and transition, the same goals that helped launch their message of reuse still guide the company today. As a Certified B Corporation and member of 1% for the Planet, the company is using business for good by creating a positive impact for employees, communities and the environment. The initial mission to protect the planet has grown into a lifestyle of reusing more, wasting less, and raising awareness about the exciting and growing movement to reduce single-use plastic.
We’re excited you found us, and we’re looking forward to offering you the best solutions, wherever you are on your zero-waste journey.
We know our success is not driven by profit alone, and now we have a partnership to help us define, measure and adhere to our positive social and environmental impact.
In 2015 we earned certification as a B Corporation, an acknowledgment of our commitment to meet rigorous standards of social and environmental performance, accountability and transparency. The designation places us among a vetted group of more than 4,000 companies in more than 70 countries committed to the growing movement of using the power of business as a force for good. As a mission-driven company, we are committed to reducing our impact on the planet not only by offering products to help eliminate waste, but also by conducting business with environmental health as our guide. Our team stays true to our mission to reduce waste, inspire stewardship, and operate a healthy business with integrity and responsibility.
We believe that small changes and consistent, daily actions can have a huge impact on the global movement to help our planet. We also believe that organizations committed to this cause need support.
In 2015, we made our annual environmental giving more concrete and transparent by becoming a member of 1% for the Planet, and pledging to donate 1% of our annual sales to non-profit organization that benefit the environment. We took a break a few years later, and then restarted our membership in 2020. 1% for the Planet is a growing network of more than 4,800 environmentally conscious members and brands representing industries and causes that share the same common belief: environmental protection and good corporate citizenship are core business principles and our joint responsibility.
Our mission is deeply rooted in fostering change in daily habits, and helping spread the word so that our work is heard, shared and has an impact on our planet. Below are a few campaigns where we’ve directly helped change mindsets and reduce a lot of waste.
- Switch the Straw: Americans use enough plastic straws every day to wrap the Earth 2.5 times. Thankfully, there is a strong movement to reduce their impact. We estimate that we’ve kept 74,000,000 plastic straws out of the waste stream, but there’s still a lot of work to do. One reusable straw can have a profound impact. Read more on our Blog. Find images and resources on our Pinterest board.
- Waste-Free Mini: At Natural Products Expo West in California we started a movement that we hope will catch on: We gave away hundreds of reusable stainless steel Mini Containers to attendees and exhibitors to use for drink and snack samples at the show. Instead of using the thousands of plastic tasting cups, people used our reusable stainless steel containers—and loved them. We changed a lot of habits and estimate that we saved 8,000 disposable cups from heading to landfill! Read more on our Blog and Instagram post.
