The most sustainable cat litter
Cat litter is a top seller in pet accessories with a worldwide sales volume of five million metric tonnes and a value of almost $3.5 billion (€3 billion). In recent years, we have seen new organic products entering the cat litter market. They are positioned as more sustainable and natural. But are they?
A brief history
A cat’s natural behaviour is to go into the garden. For domestic cats, the litter tray was invented long before the Second World War. At that time, people were using ordinary sand, wood shavings or old newspapers as litter. It was not very hygienic and quite smelly. In 1948, Ed Loewe invented cat litter. Initially, this was a clay-type product called attapulgite, with interesting absorption properties.
In the early eighties, clumping cat litter made of bentonite was invented. The clumps lock in the unpleasant odours and can be scooped out once a day. After scooping, the litter tray is clean again and has to be filled up to the original level. In contrast, with non-clumping litter, the entire litter tray has to be renewed once or twice a week, which makes clumping material more economical to use.
In the nineties, the first non-clay products entered the market. Typically, the non-clay or organic cat litters (made from wood, corn, straw, hay, coconut skins, et cetera) do not form clumps. However, in recent years we have seen further development. Thanks to special processing and additives, clumping organic products have entered the market.
Litter reputations
The disadvantage of mineral-based products is that the raw materials are mined, potentially causing unnecessary harm to the environment. On the other hand, non-mineral-based products are organic in origin and are generally residue from another organic product or production process. Obviously, this is seen as more sustainable and natural. So today, organic litters have a better image with respect to sustainability. But is this well-deserved?