Being somewhat of a luddite when it comes to laundry technology, I was perplexed when I saw a lot of people searching for “laundry sheets not made in China”.
“Piece of cake,” I chuckled, knowing that Bounce dryer sheets are made in Canada, as are Gain dryer sheets. Downy and Snuggle are made in the USA. Easy peasy.
But after a while, I realized that people weren’t talking about sheets you put in the dryer but sheets you put in the washer. Yes, a whole laundry innovation came and I was oblivious to it (although to be fair, I was totally on top of the “pod” craze).
What are laundry sheets?
If you’re a luddite like me, here’s what you need to know about laundry sheets.
No doubt buoyed by the popularity of dryer sheets and Tide pods, laundry sheets were introduced around the mid 2010s by companies like Tru Earth, Earth Breeze, and Clean People. Laundry sheets, or detergent sheets, are made of a water soluble polymer film which dissolves in water. These strips are infused with cleaning agents that help break down and remove dirt, oils, and stains.
In other words, instead of buying a huge plastic bottle and releasing harsh detergents into the environment, the promise of laundry sheets is that by throwing a sheet in the wash, you can get your clothes clean while doing minimal damage to the environment. Even the cardboard box they come in is biodegradable.
Where are laundry sheets made?
While Tru Earth and Clean People made (and continues to make) their sheets in Canada, Earth Breeze decided that they would try to gain an advantage by outsouring to China. The gold rush began as other companies like ECOS, Arm & Hammer, Grove Co, Clearalif, and Kind all rushed to enjoy the cheap labor and subpar raw materials that China offered.
It’s a pattern we’ve seen over and over again, especially with new, innovative products. While Tru Earth and Clean People stuck to their guns in giving Americans and Canadians jobs and working within the environmental protection laws of the US and Canada, greedy companies looking for any kind of edge but who couldn’t compete on quality went and found manufacturers in China who could manufacture for pennies on the dollar. These companies couldn’t care less how they achieved those low costs, whether it was exploiting their workers, stripping their land of natural resources, or mass producing these laundry sheets in the most environmentally unfriendly ways possible. Both China and these brands agreed on one thing: their dumb American and Canadian customers would never know or care.
Well, we dumb Americans and Canadians stood up. It helps that a lot of people who shop for these things are well-versed in the fact that China is the world’s biggest polluter, and that out of sight does not mean out of mind. Companies like HeySunday and Sheets Laundry Club have had to divulge China as their country of origin and promise that they’re trying their best to leave China. That wasn’t out of the goodness of their hearts—that’s because customers like you and me called them out. Neither of them are there yet, but be sure to reward them if and when they never leave China. Otherwise, don’t give them the time of day.
In the meantime, all the other companies are digging in their heels. I had a chuckle when I saw Eco Living Club say they’re based in “East Asia”. Gee, I wonder what country they’re talking about?
Unfortunately, most consumers still rush like Pavlov’s dogs to the cheapest options. If you’re on this page, it means you’ve broken out of that spell and are able to think for yourself. Congratulations 🙂
Are laundry sheets really better for the envrionment?
There’s a lot of debate on this subject.
Consumer review sites like Consumer Reports and Wirecutter have denigrated the performance of laundry sheets. There’s some important context you should know though.
These consumer sites run their tests assuming the most extreme situations. Wirecutter says that laundry sheets are “terrible at cleaning laundry”, but look at the tests they set up. “T-shirts stained with bacon grease”. Button down shirts soaked with “pepperoni pizza” stains and grease. If you’re someone who doesn’t have clothes covered in sweat or grease, chances are laundry sheets will work just fine for you.
These sites, as well as vocal people on Reddit, question how sustainable laundry sheets really are. Unbelievable, Wirecutter goes out of its way to mentioned that laundry sheets made in China “have to travel a long distance to reach the US market” and that’s a reason to avoid them. What’s maddening is that Wirecutter fails to even mention the many options you have of buying laundry sheets made in Canada. What’s even more maddening is that Wirecutter routinely pushes the made-in-China product over all others to maximize their affiliate revenue.
As for the claims that these aren’t as environmentally-friendly as people think, there’s some validity to that. It’s true that most are made with PVA (polyvinyl alcohol—that’s the polymer film I mentioned above), and even though it appears to dissolve, there’s a question of whether it’s not just breaking up into microscopic pieces and entering our waterways (same goes for things like Tide Pods). The problem with Reddit, of course, is that everyone thinks they’re a world famous scientist. Real scientists have concluded that PVA is not magic: it doesn’t “disappear” when it dissolves; some of it does biodegrade, but some of it does end up in our water (and perhaps in our bodies). But many still hold that it is still arguably preferable to, say, dumping giant plastic containers into landfills and harsh chemicals into the waterways. For now, the EPA does include it in its safer chemicals list, but the credibility of our federal government hasn’t been all that great lately. The one thing everyone agrees on is that there needs to be more research.
Should I use laundry sheets?
If you’re asking from an environmental point of view, ultimately you have to use what information you have to make your own decision.
One option, of course, is to use both. Laundry sheets are fantastic in certain scenarios, such as:
- washing lightly-soiled loads
- travel (it’s much easier to pack a box of laundry sheets than detergent and is TSA-compliant)
- giving to your college-aged kids (much easier to use and takes less space)
- giving to older adults (much easier than lifting heavy detergent bottles)
From what I see in Amazon reviews, there are lots of people who love laundry sheets and are perfectly happy with them as an environmentally-friendly alternative to plastic and harsh detergents. Especially if they’re not made in mainland China, the land of environmental abuse.
The Best Laundry Sheets Not Made in China
1. Tru Earth
These are the ones who started it all, and at over 28,000 positive reviews on Amazon, they’re still among the best. They come in linen scented and unscented versions. They’ve done so well that they’ve come up with other scents, as well as variations such as fabric softening.
They’re made in Canada, where manufacturing is subject to very stringent health regulations.
Tru Earth was the brainchild of Brian McKenzie who was watching toy unboxing videos with his children and saw how everything was wrapped in plastic, sometimes in two or three layers. He and his business partner Brad Liski created True Earth as a subscription company. Their timing was excellent as the public soon joined them in being horrified at the sheer amount of plastics being manufactured and just tossed into the environment.
The villain in this story really isn’t China. It’s American brands who see that China plastic is so cheap and just throw money to produce more and more of it. And it’s we consumers who continue to buy from them.
2. WashEZE Laundry Sheets
WashEZE was started back in 2008 by Bill West. That’s right, over 15 years ago before anyone even though about things like plastic waste, microplastics, PVAs, and whatnot, The West Group International was churning these things out, becoming a favorite among college students and even being used by the US military for its convenience and simple, no-mess solution.
It has always been and is still 100% made in the USA. I’m impressed that a company that started in 2008 had this level of discipline, integrity, and pride of ownership and manufacturing.
I am also completely shocked that West never sold out to private equity firms (which surely would have fallen over itself to rush to China to make these), nor sold out to big brands (I’m SURE that companies like P&G have begged him to sell). To this day, they still sell on their own Web site which looks like it hardly changed since 2008 (which IMO is a fantastic thing) and they also sell through retailers like Amazon.
3. The Clean People
The Clean People laundry sheets are manufactured in the United States and Canada. Their Web site doesn’t have an origin story, so I’m assuming their origin story is, “we saw what Tru Earth was doing and we wanted to make money too, eh”.
They also have rave Amazon reviews, and their differentiation is that they’re gentle and safe for people with allergies and skin sensitivities. Being made in North America, they’re also subject to regulations that brands made in China can ignore. If you find a China-made brand that’s cheaper, think for yourself how they got that cheap.
4. Beyond Laundry
These also come in scented and unscented versions and are also made in Canada. They were named the best hypoallergenic laundry detergent strips by Good Housekeeping.
5. EC30
EC30 was named the #1 pick by Good Housekeeping for overall cleaning performance. It’s made in the USA and it’s only available on their Web site.
EC30 is being a little sneaky. They’re positioning themselves as a subscription cleaning box such as Blueland, complete with cool logo and fresh Web design. But they’re actually P&G in disguise. It reminds me of that Steve Buschemi meme.
Hard to say whether Good Housekeeping’s seal of approval was really because it was a superior product, or because P&G is tight with Good Housekeeping. In either case, they’re made in the USA.
6. Rebel Green Laundry Sheets
Rebel Green is a Certified B-Corp that sells all kinds of cleaning supplies and materials. What I love about them is that they try to make all of their cleaning products in the USA, which includes not just their laundry sheets but things like laundry detergent.
7. Blue Water
Last but not least, there’s Blue Water, another brand made in the USA. You can only buy them from their site, but they tout themselves as having the lowest cost sheets among all their competitors. They offer a 100% money back guarantee if you’re not happy with them.
Conclusion
What happened with laundry sheets is typical of what we’ve seen in other “newer” products like air fryers and drones. American companies will innovate and do their best to manufacture here, but copycat brands (including some well-known brands) will steal their ideas, get it made in China, and drive the original innovators out of business. It’s unethical, it’s wrong, but unfortunately as long as consumers reward this behavior it will not stop. In the long run, innovation will cease.
Do you know of any other laundry sheets worthy of mention? Let us know in the comments.
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