National Geographic discloses that based on a 2003 MIT survey, respondents rated the toothbrush higher than cars, cellphones and computers as the innovation they can't live without. Every year, billions of manual toothbrushes are used and thrown away and the majority of them are plastic. According to One Green Planet, 1 billion toothbrushes in the US alone are thrown away every year. This amounts to 50 million pounds of plastic waste. While we've grown to be especially conscious of plastic waste, plastic toothbrushes are something that we use daily and most of us don't think twice about it. It's been the norm for decades, but it doesn't mean that we can't change our habits. Plastic toothbrushes are hard to recycle due to their mixed materials and that's why Colgate has come us with Colgate Keep.

Colgate Keep Features

PR Newswire reports that for the past ten years, Colgate has been working with TerraCycle and together, they've recycled more that 500 million oral care products, including toothbrushes. This year, Colgate is going a step further in reducing their plastic waste by launching Colgate Keep, a manual toothbrush featuring a reusable aluminum handle and replaceable snap-on heads. PR Newswire adds that the handle is lightweight and made of 100 percent aluminum. It also comes in two colors, navy blue and silver. The replaceable heads (with cheek and tongue cleanser) use 80 percent less plastic that traditional Colgate manual toothbrushes and the cardboard packaging is made up of 60 percent recycled materials and can be further recycled. Colgate Keep will come in two variants - Colgate Keep Deep Clean and Colgate Keep Whitening.

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The starter kit includes one the reusable aluminum handle and two brush heads and retails for $9.99. The refill kit costs $4.99 and includes two brush heads. Colgate Keep is now available in the US and you can find them online at Target and Amazon and at major retailers.

Colgate's Future Goals

Apart from producing Colgate Keep, PR Newswire shares that by 2025, Colgate is aiming to reduce toothbrush plastic waste by half as one of their key goals in their 2025 Sustainability & Social Impact Strategy. Another goal is to eliminate a third of new plastic usage as they transition to 100 percent reusable, recyclable, or compostable plastic packaging by 2025. Based on 2020 adult manual toothbrush sales in the US, PR Newswire deduces that if every person that uses a manual plastic toothbrush in the US will switch to Colgate Keep, an equivalent of 400 million toothbrushes will be saved in just one year.

Other Eco-Friendly Alternatives

The Other Straw Bamboo Toothbrush

Sustainably Chic recommends this bamboo toothbrush by The Other Straw which also features a replaceable head like the Colgate Keep. This may be the only bamboo toothbrush boasting this feature and that's going the extra mile since bamboo is already biodegradable.

ECOROOTS Bamboo Toothbrush and Dental Floss

While bamboo toothbrushes are gaining popularity, bamboo fiber floss is uncommon. ECOROOTS' has a zero-waste vegan floss that's made from organic and compostable bamboo fiber with activated charcoal.

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