As Aspen Bag Ladies, we have certainly been called bizarre, but to be in Bazaar, as in Harper’s Bazaar the magazine? Who woulda thunk it?

We are so proud to have made “The Hot List” in the March 2010 issue … Check it out!

Since we started Potatote, our worlds have been cracked open in terms of joining forces with other environmental activists who are doing their part to create change in a tangible way, by using new technologies to cut down on the waste and toxicity that’s not only killing our environment, but killing us too.

Kennedy is an environmental activist and attorney who was named one of Time Magazine’s “Heroes for the Planet” for his fight with Riverkeeper to restore New York’s Hudson River. That group’s work led to nearly 200 Waterkeeper organizations around the world, dedicated to preserving fishable, swimmable and drinkable waterways for
future generations. Kennedy called Aspen a very forward thinking community with great energy idealism and commitment.

Over 100 of Aspen’s change-makers and trend-setters gathered for the Waterkeeper Alliance Eco Salon on Wednesday, March 17 at the home of Holly Lueders-Spizzirri. Kennedy spoke in the living room in front of the fire (couldn’t get any cozier) about Waterkeeper and other initiatives he’s taking to further the progress of renewable energy resources in the United States. It was history, it was politics, it was environmental activism at it’s finest. It was almost impossible not to be inspired. We are so lucky to have people like Alex Halperin, publisher of Aspen Peak magazine, to host amazing events like this!

Potatote proudly donated our canvas Aspen landmark series totes to the event as a gift bag for the guests to bring home all this amazing and valuable info. Each guest also received in their totes one of our exciting newly developed potato resin t-shirt grocery bags which decompose in 40 days when composted. (Unlike the oxo-biodegradable vegetable bags you are now using at some of the Valley grocery stores which claim to biodegrade, but in reality remain in small particles even more dangerous to ocean life than a whole plastic bag, evident in the Nort Atlantic/Pacific Garbage patches in the Gyres the size of Texas … but we digress).

Anyway, keep us in mind for your next event–we can do custom bags!

Thanks to everyone who made the Eco Salon a huge success and for allowing Potatote to be a part of it. It’s events like this that makes us feel like we are part of something so much larger than ourselves. With that thought, maybe we can make a difference.

Download the PDF recap for all the amazing photos!

Recap – Eco Salon

Love,
The Aspen Bag Ladies

Aspen’s own Pat Bingham (Community Relations Director for Aspen/Pitkin)  and daughter Hilary Fitzpatrick celebrating their return from a backcountry ski trip (Potatote in tow), fresh from a close encounter with awakening bear cubs.

Trans-Atlantic swimmer Jennifer Figge

One thing we really want you to know is we aren’t a company, per se, but an idea that requires it. We are really just “Aspen Bag Ladies,” two old friends who have been skiing these mountains together for over 25 years and living in this wonderful small town in Western Colorado. So when we were invited by Aspen Peak magazine to a Ladies Luncheon with Trans-Atlantic swimmer Jennifer Figge at Plato’s, we jumped. In fact, our canvas bags were used to put together the “shwag bag” of all the goodies that were gifted to the guests. The Aspen Komen Foundation attended and provided a breast self-exam cheat sheet … one of those little things that could ultimately be life-saving.

Jennifer spoke about her previous (two) swims across the Atlantic as she is preparing for a third swim at the end of March. We were all struck by how fearless, humble, and inspiring she is. She’s so driven, but not at all in a competitive kind of way–it’s more about listening to the voice from within that says “just go for it.” I think everyone who was there will probably push a little harder after what they heard, whether in the gym, on the mountain, or in the water.

An exemplary group of women were in attendance — some of the most influential and successful in the country. Not to mention they were all beautifully styled and well dressed, which is always fun to see. We’re so proud to have them toting our canvas bags.

In terms of going for it ourselves, we have made some progress in our dialogue with the local City Market and the possibility of debuting our potato resin bags there, which would be HUGE! Stay tuned…..

The first thing he did was finger our bags. “They’re very thin,” he said.

“We can have them produced at any thickness,” I said. “This is just a sample.”

This company uses OXO-Biodegradable products for some of its retail outlets.

“You know about OXO products, right?” I said.

“I know what you’re going to say, but go ahead.”

When we explained that the plastic doesn’t biodegrade but is rather degraded into even smaller particles and can be more harmful to the environment than regular plastic, he sort of shrugged and nodded and made it clear this solution has already been decided and there’s no point in discussing it further.

To follow up, we did a little research and found a document released in January 2010 by Society of the Plastics Industry Bioplastics Council in Washington DC.

It says, “Producers of pro-oxidant and biological additives use the term “oxo-biodegradable” to describe the resulting products made using the additives. This term suggests that the products can undergo rapid biodegradation under many different end-of-life conditions. However, the main effect of oxidation is fragmentation, not biodegradation, into small particles, which remain in the environment for an undetermined amount of time, becoming uncontrollable in terms of their final disposition.”

Yeah, that’s what we said.

The report continues, “No data has been released publicly relating to mineralization rates that supports the claims of complete biodegradation. Therefore the term “oxo-fragmentable” is more appropriate to describe the final end-of-life state for these materials.

This is our favorite part: “The term ‘oxo-biodegradable’ is an appealing marketing term which is very misleading because the “biodegradation” cannot be verified because of the absence of a standard specification (i.e., an explicit set of requirements to be satisfied by a product).”

In other words, this technology might satisfy the palate of marketing people who feel more pressure than ever to invest in sustainability programs, but it does nothing to hire scientists who rely on cold, hard facts. The biggest hurdle for us in finding a plastic alternative is the cost. But with affordable products like OXO, is ultimately destroying the environment a price you’re willing to pay? You tell us. We promise we’re listening.

To read the report in its entirety, go to: http://spi.files.cms-plus.com/about/BPC/SPI%20Bioplastic%20Council%20Bioplastics%20Position%20Paper%20on%20OXO%2DBiodegradable%20Plastic%2DFINAL.pdf

Have you ever been bagged? Email us your photos!

From Aspen to Capris, there is no hiding from the Potatorazzi.

Scott the Aspen Fed Ex Guy -- Bagged!

Living Legend Klaus Obermeyer -- Bagged!

Aspen Sheriff Bob Braudis -- Bagged!

When we say "saving the world one bag at a time," this is what we're talking about..

IF YOU’VE BEEN CURIOUS ABOUT OUR POTATO RESIN GROCERY BAGS, the first prototypes have arrived and we are so very excited. It’s been a very long process cutting through a lot of red tape in terms of networking, researching and resourcing. But with a lot of determination and effort, we finally have a prototype we can actually hold in our hands.

Here’s the deal: the film for the ‘plastic like’ bags is made from organic potatoes grown in Europe. The bio resin means the bags are disposable and will decompose in 40 days when composted. No one else in this country has developed this technology and  grocery stores embracing these bags will be at the receiving end of a huge wave of publicity. How cool to be in the forefront of this enormous development!

These are changing times and yes, they are more expensive but we are in a new age, where we all have to pay more to protect our planet and eliminate harmful petroleum based plastics that kill our wild life and compromise our oceans and all of our other natural ecosystems that are being compromised by waste.

We challenge you right now to look in your cupboard or drawer or wherever you keep your used grocery bags and count them. Are there 10? 20? More? If these were potato resin bags you could recycle them or even throw them away and know they are 100% biodegradable. If you use canvas bags, be honest with yourself: How many times did you forget to bring them to the store with you?

With these bags, those worries are no more. The next several months will be dedicated to figuring out how and where to sell these bags. We hope you will follow us as we continue to climb, claw, tug, push, and pull our way through this amazing journey.