ABOUT US
Meet Ellie and Pia
BEST EARTH GOODS was founded by best friends Ellie and Pia, who met in dental school and who’ve both been in general dentistry practice for more than 20 years. Ellie is a mom, wife, private practice dentist, a former dental hygiene instructor and occasional home and travel blogger. Pia is a mom, wife, and the supervising dentist of one of the premier dental hygiene programs in the Bay Area in California. Both are members of the American Dental Association (ADA) and the California Dental Association.
Ellie: Mom, wife, dentist, former dental hygiene instructor, and part-time travel and home blogger.
Pia: Mom, wife, dentist and dental hygiene instructor.
“We started BEST EARTH GOODS (BE GOODs) because of our growing uneasiness over the amount of plastic the dental industry uses. We knew there had to be a better option for patients’ and consumers’ daily oral healthcare routine; one that helps people keep their teeth and gums healthy without contributing unnecessary waste to the environment. Our debut line includes the Better Brush, an ergonomic bamboo toothbrush with soft DuPont Tynex® bristles (designed by us!), Fab Floss, a sugarcane-based floss that is coated with vegan Candelilla wax, and Fun Flossers, single-use nylon floss with bamboo handles. We strongly believe that caring for your teeth shouldn’t mean choosing between harming the earth or blowing your budget. That’s why we sell planet-friendly, dentist-approved oral healthcare products that won’t break the bank.”
The dental industry has a MAJOR plastic problem.
Up until the mid-20th century, toothbrushes were made of natural materials, usually some combination of wood, bone, or animal bristles. The 1930s ushered in the era of the plastic toothbrush and the world has never been the same.
The problem? Plastic takes hundreds of years to decompose, meaning that every plastic toothbrush ever made still exists. The same goes for floss. Since floss and toothbrushes are relatively lightweight, once disposed of, they often don’t stay put. Many eventually find their way into the ocean, where they wreak havoc on marine wildlife.
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Today, so many toothbrushes are thrown out each year in the US that if you laid them end to end, they’d stretch around the Earth four times.
Our solution: create a greener alternative to the conventional dental routine. BEST EARTH GOODS’ products are 80% biodegradable so less waste ends up in landfill. That’s something we can all feel good about.
Our goal is to keep one million toothbrushes and 3000 miles of dental floss out of landfills and waterways by the year 2032. You can help.
Our Products
BEST EARTH GOODS sells eco-friendly, dentist-designed and tested toothbrushes and dental floss sets. Our products are almost entirely biodegradable or recyclable. We personally test the products we sell to ensure that they clean as effectively as conventional oral healthcare products.
The Better Brush
Our ergonomic toothbrush handle is made from Moso bamboo while our soft bristles are made from high performance, FDA-approved DuPont Tynex® nylon.
Fab Floss
Our floss is made from compostable polylactic acid (PLA), a bioplastic made from renewable resources like corn and sugarcane, and coated with vegan Candelilla wax.
Kids Flossers
Our flossers are made of a Moso bamboo handle and nylon filament floss, coated with vegan Candelilla wax.
Floss Case
Our travel friendly floss container is made out of bamboo with an aluminum floss cutter.
Packaging and Shipping Materials
No plastic here, just recycled cotton for our travel-friendly bags, metal staples for our tags and post-consumer recycled cardboard for our tags and shipping boxes.
What’s the big deal about bamboo, anyway?
We use Moso bamboo in all our bamboo products. Native to China and Taiwan, Moso is a species of giant timber bamboo which can grow up to 28 meters tall. Why we love it: As a material, bamboo is durable, compostable, can be recycled into particle board or burned for fuel. It is a highly renewable resource and most importantly, it is carbon neutral, taking carbon dioxide out of the air faster than almost any other plant on Earth. Once established, Moso bamboo can grow up to a meter each day and harvesting doesn’t harm the mother plant.
But the pandas?
We know, we know. We love them too so that’s why BE GOODS only uses panda-friendly Moso bamboo which is not the type of bamboo they eat.
Eco-friendly but nylon???
The short answer is we are dentists, so giving you a good clean is our first priority. Nylon bristles are the best option for toothbrush bristles on the market right now. They are widely-used for these properties:
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Strength - Nylon is durable and can withstand the wear and tear of normal brushing while giving you a thorough clean. Without compromising its strength, it can be made smaller, thus softer, so that the bristles won't irritate your gums.
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Elasticity - Nylon may have thin fibers but due to its strength and elastic nature, it retains its shape after cleaning and washing.
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Hygienic - Nylon does not absorb water and dries faster than other materials.
We’re always on the lookout for what’s new and next—when a better option for bristles comes along, you can be sure we’ll jump on it but for now, we’re opting to stick with nylon bristles.
Is it weird to get excited about toothbrush bristles? Maybe. We'll nerd out on the tech so that you can enjoy the peace of mind that comes with knowing your BE GOODS toothbrush cleans effectively and is lighter on the planet.
Giving Back to Our Community
We're serious about not just dental health and the health of the planet but also the health of our community. Which is why, for every set purchased, we donate a toothbrush to an organization working with at-risk and in-need populations here in California.
This year, we are partnering with VOICES Solano Youth Center, a youth-developed, youth-led emancipation center in Vallejo, California focused on supporting current and former foster youth transition into healthy adulthood.
