We've all heard again and again and yet again about all the reasons breastfeeding is good for babies. But it's good for the environment as well.
Cows, which make the milk that's used to make formula, are great big mooing polluters, is why. Plus there is the issue of all the formula cans or bottles – they aren’t always recyclable – as well as water used to wash a day's worth of bottles, and fossil fuels used to truck formula from factory to store.
All this to bring your attention to the fact a web store called NursingMotherSupplies.com is running a contest called "Nursing is Green." They are looking for the perfect slogan to fit on a t-shirt touting the environmentaly friendly nature of breastfeeding. The prize is a $300 breastfeeding gift basket.
I take issue with the fact they call formula "artificial baby milk" which I find a little judgy. They do sell a nice selection of products at decent prices, which I like since it can be hard know where to look to find useful products, and hey, you could win free swag.
None of these will fit on a t-shirt, but as a nursing mother who's just survived the first month, let me add these tongue-in-cheek reasons breastfeeding is green:
• Being tied to the couch with a cluster-feeding baby means you're not driving anywhere, so no carbon emissions.
• Have no time to pee or shower? Saves water!
• Falling asleep at 9 p.m. out of the sheer exhaustion of being the sole source of nutrition for a growing human being saves tons of electricity.
Got a better idea (and yeah, that's not a high bar to clear)? Get your submissions in to NursingMotherSupplies.com by April 30.
