The move evolved into a family business for Ms McLeod, teaming up with her brother Paul Byvoet (a Skin, Ski and Surf co-founder) and her cousin Georgia Fiske, to form The Boo Collective.

Each passionate to make a sustainable difference, their wholesale business started with toothbrushes in 2018 and branched into bamboo straws, children's dinner sets and sippy cups.

"Paul and I grew up on a strawberry farm on the shores of Lake Learmonth...because it was all about getting on the boat after school, skiing was a massive part of our lives. The passion to become plastic-free probably comes from there," Ms McLeod said.

Already running an eco-friendly wooden toy e-business, Ms McLeod said trying to buy her family bamboo toothbrushes seemed like "an easy switch" for home life.

Only, what Ms McLeod found was limitations in variety. In the bathroom she was constantly writing her children's names on their brushes as a way to differentiate them.

When she found a manufacturer with colour-tipped ends on their toothbrushes, Ms McLeod started the foundations for The Boo Collective with a key focus on affordability.

"I started to learn more about how amazing bamboo was as a material," Ms McLeod said. "Thirty-million plastic toothbrushes are sent to landfill in Australia every year. The bamboo plant itself has so many benefits but it also needs little water, no pesticides and is the fastest growing plant on land."

Bamboo is also naturally anti-bacterial, anti-fungal and biodegradable, which Ms McLeod were important qualities for a toothbrush.

Each toothbrush can be recycled once nylon bristles are snapped or cut off the brush stem.

IN OTHER NEWS

The Boo Collective was back on the national stage this year when it was invited to the Naturally Good Expo in Sydney, complementing what was predominantly a health food showcase.

Ms McLeod said interest in sustainable products and alternatives was gradually gaining traction as people started to realise how much they otherwise relied on plastics.

The Boo Collective aims to promote small but important changes and Ms McLeod said they were continually seeking to grow the range they offer with plastic alternatives.

The Boo Collective teams up with schools to build awareness via fundraising ventures but also teams up with sustainable focused businesses, such as Go Vita and The Healthy Hub.

Along the way they hoped to educate and encourage their children, and themselves, to better adopt waste-free lives.

If you are seeing this message you are a loyal digital subscriber to The Courier, as we made this story available only to subscribers. Thank you very much for your support and allowing us to continue telling Ballarat's story. We appreciate your support of journalism in our great city.