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Natural Awakenings Central New Jersey

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Zero Waste at Simple Bare Necessities

A new zero-waste shop and refillery has opened in Sparta. Simple Bare Necessities is a store where customers can bring in their containers and fill up on a variety of products without having any packaging to send to the landfills. It also saves money. Owner Mikaela Molnar explains, “When you refill your containers, you’re not only saving plastic and packaging from entering the waste stream; you are also saving money because you are only paying for the product itself.”

With 18 million pounds of plastic that gets dropped in the ocean each year, this way of shopping truly is a revolution, a fight back against the plastic pollution crisis.

“We source as much as we can from local farmers and makers. We only bring in organic foods, source from companies with eco-conscious values alike, and we build relationships with our vendors to work in a closed loop business model where the vendors take back the bulk packaging that they ship the products in to be sanitized, refilled and sent back to us,” states Molnar. “This system diverts so much unnecessary waste from behind the scenes from entering the landfill.” 

Simple Bare Necessities offers a wide variety of refillable from its bulk sections—anything from clean-ingredient personal care products, plant-based cleaning products and over 100 different organic foods varying from rice, beans, local handmade pastas, to granolas, brownie mix and chocolate chips. The shop also features an assortment of spices, teas, coffee, oils, vinegars, sauces, and sweeteners.

Simple Bare Necessities is a mission-based business aimed to pave the way for the refill revolution and fight back against the pollution crisis. Bring your favorite containers and stop by today.

Location:  17 Main St., Lower Level, Sparta. (Behind Astrology Boutique.) For information, call 973-362-6960 or email [email protected]. SBNZeroWaste.com. See ad, page 17.

In-Print News Briefs August 2021
Tick Talk

Spring officially sprung on March 21. We have turned our clocks ahead. We are looking forward to warm winds, sunny skies and the smell of fresh cut grass. The daffodils and tulips have recently bloomed and we are just starting with the yard work that comes with the warmer weather.  Sadly, another season has started ramping up.  Tick season.

•             The best form of protection is prevention. Educating oneself about tick activity and how our behaviors overlap with tick habitats is the first step.

•             According to the NJ DOH, in 2022 Hunterdon County led the state with a Lyme disease incidence rate of 426 cases per 100,000 people. The fact is ticks spend approximately 90% of their lives not on a host but aggressively searching for one, molting to their next stage or over-wintering. This is why a tick remediation program should be implemented on school grounds where NJ DOH deems high risk for tick exposure and subsequent attachment to human hosts.

•             Governor Murphy has signed a bill that mandates tick education in NJ public schools. See this for the details.  Tick education must now be incorporated into K-12 school curriculum. See link:

https://www.nj.gov/education/broadcasts/2023/sept/27/TicksandTick-BorneIllnessEducation.pdf

•             May is a great month to remind the public that tick activity is in full swing. In New Jersey, there are many tickborne diseases that affect residents, including Anaplasmosis, Babesiosis, Ehrlichiosis, Lyme disease, Powassan, and Spotted Fever Group Rickettsiosis.

•             For years, the focus has mainly been about protecting ourselves from Lyme disease. But other tick-borne diseases are on the rise in Central Jersey. An increase of incidence of Babesia and Anaplasma are sidelining people too. These two pathogens are scary because they effect our blood cells. Babesia affects the red blood cells and Anaplasma effects the white blood cells.

•             Ticks can be infected with more than one pathogen. When you contract Lyme it is possible to contract more than just that one disease. This is called a co-infection. It is super important to pay attention to your symptoms. See link.

https://twp.freehold.nj.us/480/Disease-Co-Infection

A good resource from the State:

https://www.nj.gov/health/cd/topics/tickborne.shtml

 

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