A broom is the most energy-efficient vacuum cleaner in the world. It has no batteries that require dangerous lithium mining or an engine that spends most of its electricity on creating hot air and noise. Indeed, brooms are inherently more eco-friendly than energy-guzzling vacuum cleaners, but not all brooms are created equal. Some are considerably more sustainable than others, as we’ll come to learn.
Here’s what we covered in this article:
What features make a broom eco-friendly?
Look for these attributes when choosing an eco-friendly broom:
- Animal-friendly bristles: Many brooms have bristles made from horse hair, the majority of which is gathered from slaughtered horses. Ethical and cruelty-free horse hair gathering methods do exist, such as obtaining it naturally during regular grooming. However, be very careful not to assume that every horsehair broom on the market is ethically sourced. To be safe, consider choosing a broom with a bristle made from plant-based fibers or recycled plastics.
- Sustainably-sourced handles: The handle makes up a significant portion of the overall ecological footprint of a broom, so make sure to look for handles made from sustainable materials such as bamboo, FSC-certified wood, or recycled plastic. Bamboo, in particular, is great as it grows quickly while needing very little water.
- Eco-friendly packaging and transport: In addition to the broom itself, you also need to consider how the broom reaches your home. If a container ship has to haul your broom from China all the way to the United States, polluting every inch of the way there, its’ ecological benefits will be vastly reduced. Try to give priority to local producers and look for recycled or biodegradable packaging.
What are the best eco-friendly brooms?
Smooth Sweep Push Broom Set (Libman)
With bristles made of recycled PET plastic, a steel handle, and a sturdy polymer brace, this broom from Libman is designed to be durable. While it’s not built from natural materials like many of the other choices on this list, it’s still an environmentally responsible choice, especially for those of you in the United States. Libman’s factories are located in Illinois, and the company is taking steps to reduce its environmental impact.
Price: $39.99 (Home Depot)
FSC-Certified Long Handled Broom (John Lewis)
John Lewis, a UK-based retailer, sells this eco-friendly broom with a handle made from FSC-certified beech wood and bristles made from horse hair. While the choice of horse hair is of concern, John Lewis maintains strict animal welfare standards and has well-established ethics and sustainability policies in place to ensure ethical sourcing.
Price: £35.00 (John Lewis)
The Original Garden Broom (Franmar)
Made using recycled components from coconut trees, this broom excels at sweeping diverse outdoor surfaces. From wet snow to dry leaves and pine needles, The Original Garden Broom handles any type of outdoor particles, but the bristle is rather scratchy so it’s not ideal for indoor sweeping. It is manufactured in Sri Lanka, which is an environmental disadvantage if you’re located in the United States or Canada. However, the natural materials and longevity of the broom make it a solid choice nonetheless.
Live Love Clean Bamboo Broom (Harper)
One of Harper Brush’s “Live, Love, Clean” line of eco-friendly bamboo products, this Iowa-produced broom has a bamboo handle and a synthetic split-tip fiber bristle. While we’d like to see some recycled content in the synthetic bristles, it’s still a great choice for Americans due to it being locally produced. Plus, Harper appears to be taking company-wide steps to reduce their environmental impact.
Price: $30.60 (Amazon) / $30.60 (Home Depot) / $38.98 (Lowe’s)
Warm Harmony Wooden Broom (Salter)
Salter, a UK company founded in 1760, offers this broom, ideal for shoppers located in the UK or Europe. It features a handle made from FSC-certified bamboo and bristles made from recycled plastic. Salter also offers other eco-friendly houseware products. However, to earn a higher ranking, we’d like to see fully transparent company-wide ethics and environmental policies. Especially with some sources claiming that they have recently moved their production from the UK to China.
Price: £14.99 (Salter)