Swedish Company Pioneers ‘Green’ Detergent
Hr Bjorkmans Mat Rental Co., a Swedish launderer, recently announced positive results from tests of a new environmentally friendly wash chemical that uses microorganisms to clean soiled mats. The company has now adopted this detergent developed by a Canadian biotech firm.
Owner/operator Carl-Johan Bjorkman says his is the first company to use this method developed by Innu-Science, based in Sainte-Julie, Québec, Canada. “Extremely dirty mats can be washed clean using nature's own microorganisms,” Bjorkman said in a news release. “And, furthermore, they turn out cleaner than when traditional chemical-based detergents are used. This has been demonstrated in tests carried out by Hr Björkman’s Mat Rental Company, and the company is now the first of its kind in the world to adopt this revolutionary method.”
Innu-Science uses microorganisms, such as bacteria, to produce reactive substances for use in laundering in place of traditional oil-based chemicals. “Today, about 50% of the oil that is drawn from the earth’s crust goes to producing chemical molecules, a process that is unsustainable in the long term,” the release said. “The microorganisms that Innu-Science is working with are used in, among other things, washing and cleaning products.”
Bjorkman added that he’s adopted the product for regular use. “After extremely good test results, we decided to start using the Innu-Science biotechnological detergents fully," he said. "The major beneficiary is naturally the environment. Biotechnology enables us to wash at lower temperatures, and the entire process is basically free of chemicals. But the tests also showed that mats cleaned in this way have better surface tension properties. This results in them being able to absorb more liquid, which is very beneficial to our customers because the more liquid and dirt a mat absorbs at the entrance, the cleaner the floors inside the building remain."
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