Every minute, an area of rainforest the size of 20 football fields combined is cut down, partly due to the creation of conventional wood pencils. O’BON stands firmly behind the notion that to lose such a massive chunk of diverse ecosystem is completely unacceptable. Made from old newspaper, and manufactured in a variety of designs and colors, O’BON pencils are setting new standards for environmentally friendly school and office supplies.
O’BON notebooks are made from paper composed entirely out of Bagasse (Buh-gas), which is sugarcane pulp left over after extracting juices from the sugarcane. Bagasse is far less taxing on our fragile environment than conventional paper, and is much cheaper to produce.
The philosophy behind O'BON is simple: Take a common school item, such as a pencil, and turn it into something exciting, something special, and something different. They strive to end the days when pencils came in bland colors, broke constantly and consumed valuable environmental resources. And pencils are only part of what they do. You will find that their entire line of school supplies is environmentally responsible, unique, and fun.
Quality, Responsibility and Affordability
O’BON is a United States based company dedicated to designing, manufacturing and distributing stationery products such as pencils, notebooks, and binders. At O’BON, they strive to incorporate 3 fundamental elements into every one of their products, specifically - quality, responsibility and affordability. Behind every single product they make exists a determined effort to surpass any and all expectations you may have of eco-friendly products.
O’BON loves to give back to the community, usually through zoo and school demonstrations. They are firmly behind the notion that education is vital towards building a better, cleaner future. O’BON does its best to teach kids the importance of recycling, reducing energy use and using products that are sustainable and responsible.
Making an O'BON Pencil
For over 400 years, the pencil has been made the same way. Take some graphite and surround it in a wood casing. The wood casing causes some problems as to encase the graphite, two pieces of wood are grooved so that the graphite fits snuggly in. Glue is then applied and the two pieces of wood are slapped together. The problem is that there is almost always an air gap between the two pieces of wood and the graphite. So, when you drop the pencil, the graphite vibrates. This vibration causes the delicate and brittle graphite to easily snap. Thus, when you sharpen a wood pencil, you will often have problems with the graphite being broken. This is frustrating as you waste time sharpening (and often resharpening) and you lose a big chunk of your pencil.
Graphite snapping is not a problem with an O'BON pencil. As we take an old newspaper, flatten it and cut it to the right width, we then apply a thorough coating of water-based glue as we wrap the graphite. We wrap it 48 times. After it is air dried and then heat dried, the newspaper hardens without any air pocket. Without air pockets, our pencil graphite is nearly impossible to break. If it drops on the floor, that's no problem for the delicate and brittle graphite. Bang an O'BON pencil on the side of your desk, then sharpen it. No breakage. O'BON pencils just don't have the graphite snapping problem that drives people with wood pencils nuts. Simply put, O'BON pencils will usually last you 3 times longer.
O'BON Pencils are shock resistant
Our special roll-on method during manufacturing tightly wraps the solid newspaper material around the graphite, leaving no vibration gaps or trapped air inside the pencil. Drop it, we expect you to! The graphite in the center wouldn't break when we drove a car over it.
O'BON Pencils win the marathon
The absence of flaky, broken graphite means that O'BON pencils generally last longer than ordinary wood pencils. Saving money, time, and most importantly; the earth's natural resources.
O'BON Pencils are safe
O'BON products conform to the European Standards of Safety (EN-71) and has the highest standards in manufacturing and environmental considerations.
History: How O’BON came to make the World’s Greatest Pencil
O’BON was born out of a new, revolutionary process in pencil making. By rolling a used sheet of newspaper around a stick of graphite, they began creating pencils that were superior to the outdated wood versions that are all too common today. Not only does this method protect the graphite much better than the old wood version, these pencils are also the more environmentally responsible choice. Add to that some simply stunning designs by their sister company Evoke, coupled with inexpensive prices and… voila! O’Bon is creating products that are the best choice for our customers in design, performance, and preserving our world’s forests.
Today, O’BON products can be found in nearly a dozen countries around the world, with plans underway to increase that number rapidly. At this juncture in human history, amidst growing concern over the state of our environment, this quick expansion is aimed at providing people with environmentally responsible options capable of making a significant difference. Every minute, an area of rainforest the size of 20 football fields combined is cut down, partly due to the creation of conventional wood pencils. O’BON stands firmly behind the notion that to lose such a massive chunk of diverse ecosystem is completely unacceptable.
This ambition to reduce deforestation on our planet makes up the foundation of our business, and is represented ever so beautifully in the designs that we use. Today, O’BON pencils are made to represent several different themes, and we dedicate our Wildlife Series so passionately to the animals that we are trying to protect. In addition, a percentage of the revenue we receive from every product we sell goes back into the community, either through education or charities in an effort to make our world an even better place to live.
