At Project Harmless, we are proud to use only TENCEL™ and cotton threads in all our products. These materials align with our commitment to sustainability. Unlike many brands, we do not use polyester threads, as they are synthetic and contribute to microplastic pollution. Our choice ensures that every detail of our products meets the highest environmental standards, from the fabric to the very threads that hold them together.

We do not recommend washing garments or accessories consist of wool unless necessary. Wool has temperature-regulating, self-cleaning, and water-repellent properties, is breathable and doesn't absorb odours, so you won't need to clean your woollen garments or accessories regularly. Most of the time, it will be enough to opt for air-cleaning by gently shaking them, or laying them flat on a chair overnight. However, if you wish to wash them, wipe clean first, and if necessary, hand wash in cold water and absolutely no tumble dryer.

Project Harmless offers a range of repair services for products purchased directly from our website. If you wish to have your product repaired, please get in touch with our team for further information. Not all repairs are possible. Standard repair fee starts from £20.

Due to Project Harmless’ small-scale, handcrafted production, only a limited number of items are available each week. Our inventory is carefully updated every Friday morning.

At Project Harmless, we are dedicated to creating high-quality, sustainable fashion items that adhere to the highest ethical standards. Our pricing strategy acknowledges the unique complexities within the fashion industry, making direct comparisons challenging. We distinguish ourselves from many fashion brands by completely avoiding plastics, including polyester threads, which complicates our design and production processes. Moreover, we do not produce our items in large volumes, which would typically allow for economies of scale.

All our products are fully handmade in Scotland by artisans paid well above the UK national living wage, supporting our local economy. We do not engage in the practice of manufacturing in lower-wage economies only to finish products in higher-wage areas for a misleading “Made in” label. Our products are made in genuinely limited quantities from deadstock materials, ensuring quality over quantity.

We prioritise transparency and avoid misleading labels in all our production processes. Our commitment to authenticity and sustainability is reflected in our pricing, which covers the true costs of ethical fashion and detailed craftsmanship involved in each unique piece. This approach ensures that every product meets our high standards and supports our mission to make fashion that doesn’t harm the planet.

To prolong the life of all garments and accessories, store them outside of direct sunlight in a cool, dry environment.

Harmless Apothecary soaps are handmade in Scotland using naturally soft Scottish water, renowned for its purity. Unlike many “handmade” soaps that are mass-produced, our cold-process soaps are slow-cured for 28 days, allowing the finest botanicals and organic essential oils to develop their full potential. They are palm oil-free, EDTA-free, and free from synthetic fragrances, making them a true alternative to greenwashed skincare.

Yes. Unlike many brands that claim to use “sustainable palm oil,” Harmless Apothecary is 100% palm oil-free. Palm oil production is a leading cause of deforestation, habitat destruction, and biodiversity loss. We believe in real sustainability, using alternatives like shea butter, mango butter, and castor oil for nourishing, ethical skincare.

Our soaps are crafted using naturally soft water from Argyll & Bute, the same water prized in whisky-making. Soft water enhances the blending of botanical ingredients, deepens their aroma, and creates a superior lather, without the need for synthetic additives like EDTA, which many conventional soaps use to counteract hard water.

Harmless Apothecary soaps are free from artificial fragrances. We use only pure, organic essential oils, carefully selected for their skin benefits and natural aromatherapy properties.

Most supermarket soaps are mass-produced with synthetic detergents, palm oil, and artificial fragrances that can strip skin of its natural moisture. Harmless Apothecary soaps are handcrafted in small batches, cold-processed, and slow-cured for 28 days, allowing the botanicals to work in harmony with your skin’s natural balance.

Yes. All Harmless Apothecary products are 100% vegan and cruelty-free. We don't use animal-derived ingredients and we never test on animals.

Thanks to our slow-curing process, Harmless Apothecary soaps last significantly longer than conventional soaps. On average, one bar lasts 2 to 4 weeks with daily use. To extend its lifespan, store it on a draining soap dish and keep it dry between uses.

Yes. Our formulas are crafted with gentle, botanical-rich ingredients and free from irritants like SLS, parabens, EDTA, and synthetic fragrances. Many customers with eczema or sensitive skin find relief using our soap bars.

We go beyond just “eco-friendly” claims, we create products that are truly sustainable. Every formula is plastic-free, palm oil-free, EDTA-free, and we handcraft in small batches to minimise waste. All packaging are recyclable.

Harmless Poop Bag offers a new type of dog waste bag material available to all dog owners. It is uniquely water-reactive and can rapidly disintegrate in landfill or in our rivers and oceans, posing no threat to marine life. Once used, it can be placed in any waste bin.

Harmless Poop Bags is made from pure polyvinyl alcohol. This is the same material used in certain pharmaceutical products, like capsules cases that dissolve in your stomach.

We’ve repurposed this material, to create bags that are strong enough for their purpose, yet sensitive enough to disintegrate rapidly when exposed to the open environment, particularly water. This characteristic combined with their non-toxic nature makes them harmless for the environment and wildlife.

All other dog waste bags, including conventional home compostable and biodegradable bags, are designed to be water resilient. Harmless Poop Bag is the opposite, incorporating water-reactive material in order to guarantee harmless dissolubility and/or disintegration. Approximately 10% of all general waste plastic worldwide ends up in our rivers and oceans. As a result, an estimated 100 million marine animals die each year from contact with plastic in the oceans. If a Harmless Poop Bag ends up in our waters, it will rapidly disintegrate in our seas and oceans. Unlike conventional bags, it will not ensnare marine life.

In conclusion, unlike all other dog waste bags which are designed to be water-resistant and robust, Harmless Poop Bags are designed to leave the Earth ASAP after use without harming it in the process.

No. Plant-based (cornstarch) compostable bags are made from Polylactic Acid (PLA) using cornstarch and require high heat and specialised enzymes to fully decompose. 

They may break down into their constituent parts (carbon dioxide and water) within three months in a strictly “controlled composting environment,” that is, an industrial composting facility heated to 140 F and fed a steady diet of digestive microbes. At this time (January 2023) not many industrial composting facilities exist in the UK.

Polylactic Acid (PLA) dog waste bag made using cornstarch sometimes claims to be able to break down in dedicated home dog waste compost bin (dedicated as the resulting compost should only be used on non-edible plants given the potential of toxins from the dog waste).  However, not many dog owners have a dedicated home dog waste compost bin. There is also growing evidence that many of these bags do not break down in home compost bins. Please visit this link for more information.

The vast majority of "plant-based compostable" dog waste bags end up in landfill. There is no light and little oxygen available in landfill so it will take decades to fully decompose. In addition, these bags release a significant amount of methane when they break down as they are made of corn, an organic material.

If they end up in our rivers and oceans they may pose a risk to marine life as they are water resistant and will likely retain their form factor for many years. 

Conclusively, plant-based compostable bags cannot be recycled, if they enter a recycling stream, they will contaminate the entire batch and the entire batch needs to be rejected and unviable. 

Whilst biodegradable bags are better than degradable bags, they still require decades to break down in a landfill. The precise timeline is not known, however, the University of Plymouth completed a study in 2019 in which a range of biodegradable bags tested were all still functional after 3 years in water and soil. Many of these bags do not biodegrade in our oceans and are impossible to biodegrade in landfill. 

Conventional dog waste bags are often marketed as “degradable” by a traditional marketing tactic of greenwashing. They represent the vast majority of dog waste bags used today and tend to be the lowest cost, despite the fact that they are creating an eco-disaster for the planet and wildlife. It is normal for such bags to take over 500 years to degrade, and in the process they release toxins and microplastics. If they end up in our rivers and oceans their shape will retain integrity for many decades to come, potentially causing detrimental effects to marine life as they degrade, their microplastics enter the marine system and lead to harmful consequences to the human food chain and global welfare. 

Degradable dog waste bags are made of the same material as single-use plastic shopping bags which are being phased out worldwide and cannot be recycled and are  worse options.

In conclusion, they are very low cost in monetary terms, however, the cost to the earth of their use is a significant and hugely growing environmental disaster. 

No. Oxo-biodegradable bags break down by oxygen and heat or UV light.  As they break down they produce byproducts of bio-additives that disintegrate incompletely into microplastics. 

The European Commission recently endorsed a ban on oxo-biodegradable plastics, driven by the risk of microplastic particles entering the human food chain. 

Harmless Poop Bags have been designed to maintain integrity until disposed of, ideally in the nearest waste bin. Our bags have been weather tested in various locations across Scotland, including Glasgow, Perth, and Edinburgh by our team and supporters.

However, we still encourage dog owners to dispose of used bags as soon as possible, which they can do in any public waste bin (see "Where can I dispose of used Harmless Poop Bags") and not to use the bags in extreme weather.

We also advise against jogging or undertaking exercise whilst carrying a used Harmless Poop Bag or use in extreme weather conditions.

It used to be the case that you had to use specific marked public bins for dog waste. This is no longer the case in the UK and Harmless Poop Bags can be disposed of in any public waste bin. However, do watch out for any local exclusions to this rule.

In the UK alone there are 12-13 million dogs. Assuming all dog owners use dog waste bags 3 times a day, the number adds up to 36 million bags used daily, or just to simplify, over 13 billion used waste bags in a year. 

If only 5-10% of that number enters our environment, that means from 650 million to 1.3 billion used waste bags annually enters our environment and our water.  The vast majority of these will not degrade in water for hundreds of years, and as degrading, they will release toxins and microplastic particles which are harmful to both marine life and humans, respectively. 

Our seas and oceans are borderless and this number is only for the UK. 10% of general waste plastic is estimated to enter our rivers and oceans annually worldwide killing an estimated 100 million marine animals per year. Dog waste bags are an essential contributor to this growing human-made disaster, but one that has been significantly under-appreciated by national governments to date.

The vast majority of conventional dog waste bags used, often marketed as “degradable”, are the same material as single-use carrier bags. However, whilst UK supermarket issuance of carrier bags has fallen 97% since 2015 to under 200 million in 2022, this year over 10 billion dog waste bags will be used. It is thus a significantly overlooked environmental issue. 

Yes. Harmless Poop Bag is designed to have high mechanical and high tensile strength whilst maintaining its integrity, so it is suitable to use for other pets such as cats.

Cat litter presents a big problem for the environment, since every time you need to throw cat waste out of the litter, a bag is used and disposed of. Our bags can help with the disposal of cat waste and litter. 

We recommended cat owners use biodegradable cat litter.

No. Harmless Poop Bags are thicker than normal dog waste bags to cater for their water-reactive properties. In other words, they are designed to fulfil their purpose without leaking or bursting. 

This means they are too thick to place on rolls, however, that's why we offer an attractive waterproof storage tin, so they can be located at the front or back door, or in the car, without looking out of place, and convenient to take a couple of bags every time you take your dog out.

We also offer a specially designed pouch for Harmless Poop Bags, handmade in Scotland, which can be attached to most dog leads.

Our pricing is higher than most other brands, however our manufacturing process is extremely complex and expensive for our medical-grade material. In fact, the price is approximately five times greater than conventional home compostable bags, against whom we price our product. 

We thus make a small profit margin compared to conventional dog waste bag brands made of inferior materials. We purposely keep pricing down by offering a direct-to-consumer model. This enables us to build stronger relationships with our customers and provide those customers with a significantly higher value product by eliminating the margin normally provided to stockists. Some stockists sell our product and they have taken the active decision to place the environment as the priority first over profit.

Indeed there is only us and the manufacturer, unlike most competitors who have manufacturers, import agents, wholesalers and/or retailers, with a margin being added at every step.

Thus our product offers significantly more intrinsic value to consumers compared to all other bags, where profit margins are significantly higher despite their lower cost.

Thus consumers are purchasing conventional dog waste bags with incredibly low intransigent value whilst, particularly for degradable bags, devastating the planet.  

Governments worldwide are penalising single-use shopping bag usage, yet “degradable” dog waste bags are made from a similar material.  We believe governments should ban such bags as they do with other single-use plastics.

However, fundamentally we believe that pricing should be considered in context. The average subscription to Harmless Poop Bags is every 2.5 months. This equates to a weekly cost for one dog of £2.50 per week, less than one weekly takeaway coffee. 

Not a significant price to pay to help our planet and marine life.

Yes. Every year, scientific studies estimate that more than 850 million metric tons of greenhouse gas emissions are released into the atmosphere. From that number, at least 8 million metric tons enter the ocean and acidify our oceans, making them hotter, and less habitable. 

The never ending cycle of plastic breaking down and creating greenhouse gases, as well as atmospheric greenhouse gases entering the ocean, results in the amplification of the rate of climate change and exacerbates our global issue. 

That is why we require more innovations and technologies, like Harmless Poop Bags,  that prevent the further use of single-use plastic bags.