5 Indian Eco-Friendly Brands That Are Saving the Planet—One Product at a Time

A few years ago, I stood at a beach in Mumbai that looked more like a garbage dump than a shore. Plastic bottles tangled in fishing nets, torn flip-flops, and food wrappers littered the sand where children once built castles. My heart sank. I remember watching a little girl trying to dig through the trash to find clean sand. That moment hit hard. Were we really leaving this behind for the next generation?

It’s easy to feel helpless. We recycle a little, carry jute bags, maybe say no to straws. But the truth is, our everyday choices — what we wear, what we buy, how we live — hold the real power to change the story. And thankfully, some Indian brands are rewriting this script beautifully.

Let’s celebrate 5 Indian brands that are not just creating eco-friendly products, but are building a better, cleaner, more conscious India — one green step at a time.

1. Bamboo India – Turning Toothbrushes into Tools of Change

In a country where over 150 million plastic toothbrushes are discarded every month, the impact on the environment is staggering. Each one takes up to 500 years to decompose, polluting our land and oceans. But one man — Yogesh Shinde, a former army officer turned eco-warrior — decided to challenge this norm.

In 2016, Yogesh founded Bamboo India, a Pune-based social enterprise, with a simple but powerful vision: to replace everyday plastic items with sustainable bamboo alternatives. Starting humbly in his backyard with just a few tools and a big dream, he launched his flagship product — the bamboo toothbrush.

What set Bamboo India apart wasn’t just the eco-friendliness of the product, but its deeply human mission — to raise awareness, promote conscious consumerism, and support rural artisans. The toothbrushes, made from ethically sourced bamboo and biodegradable bristles, soon became a symbol of change.

Over the years, Bamboo India expanded its portfolio to include bamboo earbuds, tongue cleaners, travel kits, and corporate gift items — all handcrafted with the same mission: less plastic, more planet.

Impact Highlights:

• Over 1 million eco-friendly toothbrushes sold across India and abroad

•  Empowered rural communities and artisans, creating livelihoods in villages

•  Conducted awareness drives in schools and corporates about plastic pollution

•  Helped divert tons of plastic waste from landfills and oceans

Yogesh believes that “small changes in daily habits lead to big environmental impacts.” And Bamboo India proves it. What began as a backyard initiative is now a nationwide movement, inspiring citizens to rethink consumption and choose sustainability.

In a world drowning in plastic, Bamboo India isn’t just selling toothbrushes — they’re shaping a culture of conscious living.

2. Brown Living – The One-Stop Eco Shop

In a world where eco-conscious living often feels confusing or out of reach, Chaitsi Ahuja, a sustainability advocate from Mumbai, set out to simplify things. In 2019, she founded Brown Living, India’s first online marketplace exclusively dedicated to sustainable and zero-waste living.

Chaitsi noticed that while people wanted to make environmentally responsible choices, they were often overwhelmed by greenwashing, lack of transparency, or simply didn’t know where to begin. That’s where Brown Living steps in — not just as a store, but as a trusted guide to living mindfully.

 What Brown Living Offers:

Brown Living is a curated platform featuring hundreds of eco-friendly brands that meet strict sustainability criteria. Whether you're looking for:

• Home essentials (natural cleaners, compostable brushes, bamboo kitchenware)

• Fashion (organic cotton clothing, upcycled accessories, cruelty-free bags)

• Beauty (plastic-free skincare, natural soaps, refillable products)

• Lifestyle products (eco-friendly gifts, stationery, personal care kits)

Every product goes through a rigorous “Brown Lens” curation process — analyzing its entire life cycle, from materials and production to packaging and disposal. Only those that meet low-waste, ethically sourced, and biodegradable/recyclable standards are listed.

 Why Brown Living Matters:

• Supports over 250+ eco-conscious Indian brands and artisans

• Reduces plastic waste by promoting plastic-free packaging and zero-waste alternatives

• Empowers local craftspeople, women entrepreneurs, and rural producers

•  Creates a conscious consumer ecosystem where every purchase has purpose

•  Educates customers through blogs, workshops, and sustainability guides

Chaitsi’s mission is simple: to make sustainable living easy, accessible, and mainstream. By creating a seamless shopping experience that aligns with values, Brown Living has helped tens of thousands of customers transition to more eco-friendly habits — one mindful purchase at a time.

In Chaitsi’s Words:

“Brown Living is more than a marketplace. It’s a movement — a collective effort to change how we consume and co-exist with nature.”

3. EcoRight – Fashion That Doesn’t Cost the Earth

 What Makes EcoRight Unique?

1. Eco-Friendly Materials

   • EcoRight uses recycled cotton, jute, and RPET fabric (made from recycled plastic bottles).

   • Each RPET bag saves about 6 plastic bottles from ending up in oceans or landfills.

2. Solar-Powered Manufacturing

   • Their products are made in certified ethical factories that are fully solar-powered and follow zero-waste manufacturing practices.

   • Workers are paid fair wages and work in safe, respectful conditions.

3. Fun & Functional Design

• What sets EcoRight apart is its vibrant, quirky aesthetic. Each bag is adorned with playful, eye-catching illustrations that often carry environmental messages, animal themes, or pop culture twists.

• Their products aren’t just good for the planet — they’re designed to spark conversations.

   Impact So Far:

• Over 1 million plastic bottles repurposed into durable fabric

•  Empowering women artisans and skilled workers in India

•  Helped eliminate tons of single-use plastic through reusable bags

•  Shipped eco-products to over 85 countries worldwide

• 100% of products made in solar-powered, carbon-neutral factories

    Their Mission Is Clear:

“To make sustainable the new normal by creating products that are fun, functional, and environmentally responsible.”

EcoRight doesn’t preach sustainability — it celebrates it. Through bold designs, honest practices, and a whole lot of heart, they’re building a world where being eco-friendly isn’t a trend — it’s a joyful lifestyle.

4. Climes – Make Every Purchase Climate-Positive

In a time when every click and cart has an environmental cost, Climes is reimagining how we shop — by giving our purchases the power to heal the planet. Founded in 2021 by Anirudh Gupta and Tanushree Sengupta, Climes is a revolutionary climate-tech startup based in India that helps individuals and businesses take real, measurable climate action.

Unlike most companies that sell tangible products, Climes sells transformation — a way for consumers to become part of the climate solution, not the problem.

How Climes Works:

Climes embeds a climate action feature into the checkout process of partner brands — from fashion and beauty to travel and food. When a customer completes their purchase, they’re prompted with a unique option:

“Would you like to offset the carbon footprint of your order?”

With just one click (and often just a few rupees), customers can fund verified climate projects such as:

• Reforestation (planting native trees in degraded landscapes)

• Clean energy (supporting solar and wind energy in rural communities)

• Regenerative agriculture (helping farmers adopt climate-friendly practices)

• Biogas and cookstove projects (reducing harmful emissions in low-income homes)

All projects are third-party verified, trackable, and designed to benefit both the planet and local communities.

Transparency Is Key:

Climes stands out for its radical transparency:

• Every contribution is logged on a digital climate ledger

• Customers receive updates and impact reports showing how their money made a difference

• Climes uses a “micro-offset model,” allowing anyone to contribute meaningfully — no big commitments required.

Impact So Far (as of early 2024):

• Over 20,000 climate-positive purchases completed

• Millions of rupees invested into on-ground climate action

•  Partnered with over 75 brands, including Bare Necessities, BoAt, and Sleepy Owl

•  Supporting climate projects across India, especially in underserved rural areas

Their Philosophy?

“Climate action shouldn’t be a luxury. It should be built into our everyday choices.”

With Climes, climate positivity becomes seamless, simple, and shared. It's not about guilt-tripping consumers — it’s about empowering them to make an impact effortlessly.

5. Daily Dump – Composting Made Cool

In a society where garbage is "out of sight, out of mind," one woman decided to bring waste back into the conversation — and the home — in a beautiful way. Enter Daily Dump, the brainchild of Poonam Bir Kasturi, a designer and social entrepreneur from Bengaluru who dared to ask:

“What if we could turn our kitchen waste into something valuable, right at home?”

Launched in 2006, Daily Dump set out to make composting easy, aesthetic, and accessible, especially for urban Indian households. What started as a small project has now sparked a national movement around waste awareness, sustainability, and mindful living.

The Heart of the Movement: Composting at Home

Daily Dump creates beautiful terracotta composters that fit seamlessly into Indian homes and lifestyles. These aren’t bulky, industrial bins — they’re handcrafted, stackable units with playful names like:

• Khamba

• Gobble Junior

• Leave It Pot

These composters help households turn everyday kitchen waste — peels, leftovers, coffee grounds — into nutrient-rich compost, affectionately called black gold. And the best part? It’s odor-free, hassle-free, and empowering.

Design Meets Sustainability

As a product designer, Poonam believed that design could transform behavior. So instead of shaming people about their waste, Daily Dump took a different approach:

• Playful visuals and quirky branding

• Compost guides, videos, and workshops

•  A strong emotional message: "You are not a waste generator. You are an earth restorer."

By making composting visually appealing and emotionally satisfying, Daily Dump turned a messy chore into a joyful daily ritual.

Impact at a Glance (as of recent updates):

• Over 90,000 homes across India use Daily Dump composters

•  Diverts tons of wet waste from overflowing landfills every day

•  Supports local potters and artisans, preserving traditional skills

•  Trained thousands through workshops, schools, and corporates

•  Developed a whole ecosystem of waste-sorting tools, composting accessories, and education materials.

Beyond the Product: A Behavior Change Movement

Daily Dump isn't just about selling composters. It's about changing our relationship with waste — helping people understand that what we throw away doesn’t really go away.

Their work spans:

• Urban gardening initiatives

• Composting consultancy for apartments and institutions

• Community composting hubs

• Educational resources for schools, cities, and policymakers

Poonam Bir Kasturi’s Vision:

“We’re not in the business of waste. We’re in the business of shifting mindsets — from trash to transformation.”

Her passing in 2023 was a huge loss to the sustainability community, but her legacy lives on in the soil of thousands of gardens, homes, and hearts across India.

The Ripple Effect Starts with Us

The truth is, these brands aren’t just selling products. They’re selling a future — one that smells of clean air, sounds of laughter in lush forests, and feels like walking barefoot on unspoiled sand.

If you're someone who’s ever felt, “What difference can I make?” — you already are. By supporting brands that care, by making mindful choices, by sharing this story.

If this inspired you, you might also enjoy my article on From Failure to Fertility: How Vermicompost Turned a Broke Farmer into a Millionaire in India it’s perfect for anyone curious about how simple eco-ideas like composting are turning into successful businesses across the country.

So tell me — which eco-friendly product are you using or planning to switch to? Have a favorite green brand you want to shout out? Drop it in the comments! Let’s grow this list together.

Because change doesn’t need to be loud. It just needs to be real.