Jutexpo Jute Bags
We started selling the Jute bags in 2003 to provide a functional, durable alternative to the scourge of modern shopping; the carrier bag, 20 million of which are used, and mostly binned, in Britain each year. Jutexpo is a forward-thinking, environmentally-conscious company, dedicated to reducing plastic  pollution, and have pioneered biodegradable shopping bags, made from sustainable plant fibres called jute.
The company was founded in 2002 when the CEO identified an opportunity to provide a practical solution to companies and consumers who wanted an ecological alternative to a plastic bag. Years spent in India working closely with the jute industry had developed strong relationships with the mills, providing an established supply route from which to grow the business. The factory making the bags is situated in West Bengal.
Jutexpo recognises its responsibilities to workers with an independently audited fairtrade policy, including guarantees on the right to freedom of association and collective bargaining (unionisation), safe working conditions, fair pay and hours,  and the avoidance of child labour. Crucially (and unusually at a time where the pattern of outsourcing work seems like a free ticket to off-shouldering corporate responsibility) their standards extend to all workers producing products or services for Jutexpo, whether or not they are employees of the company; Jutexpo requires all its contractors to provide these conditions and observe these standards when producing or distributing products or components of products for them.
The bags are transported to this country by ship to avoid air pollution, and are totally biodegradable, using natural, renewable plant materials and traditional skills to combat a distinctly modern, world pollution problem. Jute bags are extremely durable - one Jute bag will last longer than many thousands of plastic bags (you can even put them in the washing machine on a cool wash, although  beware, some running is likely!) and unlike its plastic counterpart, when finally discarded a Jute bag will naturally decompose.
Recognising that the production & transportation of any product, however ‘green’, creates a climate ‘footprint’, Jutexpo has teamed up with Climate Care, and together they have estimated the emissions from the bags' manufacture and transport. They will then offset these emissions through projects in sustainable energy and rainforest restoration, making Jutexpo bags the first and currently (as of April 2006) the only Jute Bag that carries the 'climate neutral' label.
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