Green Toys, a California-based startup that launched a line of recycled-plastic kids' toys in February, sent us their Cookware & Dining Set to review at our request. The concept is irresistible (Kids' play cooking gear made from recycled milk jugs? Can you say "instant media celebrity"? Well, in our world, anyway.) so we wanted to know how good they really were. As it turns out, very.

The set features four generous place settings, complete with cups, bowls, plates, and all three standard utensils, as well as a pot and pan thrown in for good measure. All of the parts are of a very high quality - well designed, easy to handle. The colors, which are part of the plastic and thus eliminate the need for any paints, tend towards the pastel but are bright enough to have real character.


Since these are made entirely in California - which offers clear quality control benefits - the production cost is understandably a bit higher than if they were produced in China. Green Toys did a very savvy thing making their set so large - it effectively splits that cost with the consumer by offering so many more dishes than a cheaper set like this one, helping to deflect some of what would otherwise be direct competition and adding value. Combined with the "Made in USA" label, the safety pedigree (all their products are extensively tested for lead and phthalates and are BPA-free), and the environmental acumen (recycled toys really do make a difference) we think these toys represent a $40 investment many parents are willing to make. The huge pile of utensils that poured out of the box was really a surprise to us, and the added pieces make a big difference - setting a full table vs. just having a spoon, and having four place settings rather than four, opens up a lot of possibilities for Z's pretend play that a smaller set wouldn't.


We'll be phasing out Z's previous, unsourced, very shiny plastic play tableware in the days to come - it's probably made of PVC, and thus probably contains phthalates. In other words, we are pretty much the exact target market Green Toys is trying to reach: Parents who generally buy fewer toys but are prepared to pay for quality when they do, and are willing to consider all kinds of external factors when making purchases - environmental cost, potential health impacts, workers' rights, and quality - especially when those factors are presented to them as an affirmative consumer choice rather than as a form of self-denial. The pedigree is worth a lot; for this audience you pretty much have to bat 1.000 to earn the sales. Green Toys has done it.

The company also makes a cute play tea set for $25, a $20 set of sandbox toys, and an indoor gardening kit for $30.

Like what you see? Buy it on Amazon, or head to ZRecs sister blog Gardenaut for a review of Green Toys' Indoor Gardening Kit.

This post from the ZRecs Archives was originally published on April 21, 2008.