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MN Woman Makes Earth-Friendly Easter Eggs

MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) -- A Twin Cities woman has a new take on the annual Easter egg hunt. She still uses the colorful eggs, but she doesn't want them to be found years later in a landfill.

Christine Lantinen owns Eco-Eggs, and her Easter preparations involve much more than a trip to church. As the mother of two young kids, it also includes an annual egg hunt.

But the colorful candy holders she uses are different than the typical plastic egg.

"They are completely plant based," she says.

She uses her Eco-Eggs, which are made from corn starch. They are biodegradable in industrial compost and will break down in a matter of months.

"We really got excited about an opportunity to change holiday entertaining," Lantinen said. "That was our goal was to make it more green."

The idea for Eco-Eggs started as a challenge to offer a U.S.-made plastic egg at her candy store. After doing some research, Lantinen realized she could create her own environmentally-friendly egg. That led to a patent and trademark for Eco-eggs.

"I'm just passionate about it," Lantinen said. "We really had fun with it."

Eco-Eggs have been in specialty stores, like Creative Kidstuff, for about six weeks, and they're already selling out.

Happi Olson, of Creative Kidstuff, said she's not surprised that the eggs are selling.

"This is what we call a runaway," she said. "It's great."

Part of the appeal of Eco-Eggs is their larger size. The eggs can hold larger candies and snack packs. They're also made in southern Minnesota, and kids can't tell the eggs are corn-based rather than petroleum-based.

And if one of the Eco-Eggs isn't found on a hunt, the earth won't hold it against the hiders.

To learn more about Eco-Eggs, just go to www.ecoeggs.com

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