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Brush Your Teeth, Save the Planet: Goodwell Co.

Elizabeth Dahl
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the goodwell company biodegradable toothbrushes
Who knew keeping your teeth clean could make the earth so dirty? Apparently, Patrick Goodwell and Aaron Feiger, co-founders of The Goodwell Company, did. They’ve done something about the estimated 50 million pounds of waste created by toothbrushes each year: The Goodwell Company makes them biodegradable. That translates to removing about 12 pounds of plastic from landfills and oceans per person throughout each lifetime.

Spotted at the Made Here PDX store, which highlights Portland, Oregon’s artists, designers, and local businesses, The Goodwell Company got its start via the crowd funding site Crowd Supply where they surpassed their goal of $12,500 by $4,600. Clearly a lot of people want sustainable dental care products. Goodwell and Feiger have created a one stop shop for everything you need to keep your mouth clean and smelling wonderful. Their medical-grade steel handle allows you to detach the brush head and replace it with a new one, or swap out the toothbrush attachment for the tongue scraper or flossing head. When you’re done with the toothbrush head, toss it out your bathroom window– well, only if you have a garden below. It’s fully compostable.

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Perhaps one of the most exciting products they offers is the Bamboo + Binchotan toothbrush. Its design is sleek and natural with shockingly black bristles which are made of binchotan, an increasingly popular charcoal traditionally made in Japan. Now, it might sound like putting charcoal in your mouth is the last thing you’d like to do, but it will actually help naturally adjust the pH balance of your mouth and kill even more germs so your breath will be an utter delight. This entire toothbrush is completely compostable, made from sustainably grown bamboo, meaning there’s no guilt in throwing it out.

The Goodwell Company also offers subscription plans, which are cheaper than the cost of buying new name brand brushes every few months. There are three plan options for the subscriptions delivered every other month: Good, Gooder, and Goodest. The Good plan is $6 for a Bamboo + Binchotan toothbrush or the Goodfloss products. For $4 more, the Gooder plan is the premium toothbrush and biodegradable brush attachments. Or, treat your environmentally-conscious mouth to the best and spring for the Goodest package which includes the Premium toothbrush Kit, which has the biodegradable brush, tongue scraper, flosser, and a travel case, and a box of Goodfloss every other month.

Thanks to The Goodwell Company, you can save the planet while also saving it from coffee breath.

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