By Kate Hill

Staff Writer

Cazenovia resident Beth Race is the founder and owner of Eco-Baggeez, LLC — a new business that produces earth-friendly reusable sandwich bags.

This summer, Eco-Baggeez re-sealable sandwich bags became available for purchase in stores throughout New York State.

The new product provides consumers with a high quality, green alternative to traditional plastic sandwich and snack bags.

Unlike other alternatives, Eco-Baggeez contain no plastic or petroleum-based products of any kind. They are also microwaveable.

The recyclable and compostable paper bags are made out of 100 percent sustainable products that are sourced and manufactured in the United States.

Prior to starting her new business venture, Race had multiple careers, working as a computer programmer and analyst; a full-time mother; a teaching assistant at Burton Street Elementary School; and a technical support specialist for Cazenovia Central School District.

The entrepreneur conceptualized Eco-Baggeez a decade ago while working at Burton Street.

“I had seen a presentation by the art teacher, Mary Damon, on the harmful effects of plastic bags on the environment,” Race said. “Later, I went back and opened my lunch bag to find that I was using three to four sandwich bags every day, and so were my children . . . I started looking for something more environmentally friendly and couldn’t find something that worked with our lifestyle.”

Race began researching the negative impacts of plastics and was shocked to learn that 26 billion plastic sandwich bags were thrown into landfills each year in the United States alone.

That number has since risen to 97 billion.

Her research also revealed that plastic bags take an average of 50 years to biodegrade, and that when they do break down, they introduce harmful chemicals into the earth.

According to Race, the green alternatives on the market at the time were expensive (over $14) and available by mail only.

She also noticed that most of the products were made from some form of re-usable plastic, which requires energy and chemicals to clean.

“I felt that wasn’t as environmentally friendly as it first sounded,” she said.

Rather than settle for what was available, Race decided to design a better alternative herself.

“My grandfather and great-grandfather [on my mother’s side] were both entrepreneurs,” Race said. “Maybe because of that, my mother always encouraged her kids to look at things differently and to talk about how things could be made better.”

The inventor spent a number of years searching for the ideal combination of materials for her product.

She researched a variety of existing materials and spoke to a number of bag producers and paper industry experts to find a material that was both highly functional and as green as possible.

Race finally decided on natural brown Kraft Paper — a sustainably forested material that helps keep foods fresh during temporary storage by absorbing certain natural levels of moisture, fat and grease.

Through networking, Race was also able to find a company in California capable of producing a recyclable and biodegradable tape for sealing the bags.

Eco-Baggeez are produced in Oneida by Alternatives Industry — a business division of The Arc of Madison Cortland that trains and employs adults with disabilities.

Race was encouraged to reach out to The Arc by Shannon Enders, the organization’s director of development and communications at the time.

“Once I saw the facility, I was sold,” Race said. “They handle quite a few manufacturing processes. They also have warehousing and shipping and receiving capabilities, so it was the perfect fit for Eco-Baggeez.”

Through the affiliation, Race added, Eco-Baggeez are in the process of becoming the first green alternative food service sandwich bags for the State of New York.

Today, Race operates her business alongside her daughter, Keeley, a Cazenovia High School graduate who serves as director of sales and marketing.

According to Race, Keeley chose the position over another job in New York City because she is passionate about helping to create a greener world.

Eco-Baggeez are now available as far east as New Hartford (Peter’s Cornucopia) and Poughkeepsie (Adams Fairacre Farms), and as far west as Rochester (Lori’s Natural Foods and Abundance Co-op).

The bags are also available at 20|EAST in Cazenovia; Nelson Farms Country Store in Nelson; the Colgate Inn in Hamilton; GreenStar in Ithaca; Green Planet in Fairmount; Green Hills in the south of Syracuse; and Natur-Tyme in Dewitt.

“We’ve only been selling for one month,” Race said. “Other locations on the horizon are in Binghamton, Brooklyn and Long Island.”

Eco-Baggeez LLC plans to donate a percentage of its profits to 4ocean.com to help rid the oceans of plastic, as well as to organizations that support reforestation efforts in areas devastated by wildfire.

For more information on Eco-Baggeez, visit eco-baggeez.com.