Single use plastics?

[Anonymous]

Any practical suggestions for cutting down? There are so many products that only come in single use plastic containers. We eliminated the milk by moving to glass bottles from the farm and in the summer we can get stuff at the farmers’ market but I’m struggling with the berries, yogurt, cottage cheese, toiletries….

[Anonymous]

Lots of toiletry companies are addressing this and slowly starting the switch over to reusable or more easily recycled materials. Method has aluminum bottle hand soaps, for example, and there are other startups (whose names I’m blanking on - terracycle?) that you would buy a product in and then return it.

The other stuff, I don’t know. I haven’t seen bulk cottage cheese or yogurt. Write to the berry companies; surely they must be able to switch to cardboard, no? Which has its own issues but is at least biodegradable.

[Anonymous]

If you buy berries from a farmer's market they will let you pour the berries into your own bag or container so they can re-use the plastic container.

You can buy yogurt in glass jars.

[Anonymous]

I always take a few minutes to submit a comment to the company website or email their PR person telling them I would prefer more sustainable packaging.
Best advice is buy bulk, buy less packaged stuff, and eat in season. Berries are flown in or shipped long distances except during the height of summer so that's why they come protected in plastic boxes.
You can make your own yogurt, it's fairly easy but it's a bit of work.

[Anonymous]

We still use some of the single use products but we stopped using the single use plastic at home for storage like Ziploc baggies. We replaced all of our storage containers with reusable silicone bags or glass storage containers with snap lock tops. We use our own mesh produce bags when going to the grocery store. We buy beans, rice etc in bulk and use our own reusable bags for that purpose. We compost most of our trash and use Veteran's Compost to pick it up. We recycle the single use yogurt, sour cream etc. We take the plastic film packaging back to the grocery store where they have the recycle bins for plastic film. (I don't know if it actually happens or it is just there to make all of us feel better).

I have a child and I try not to buy the individual packages of snacks. I buy the big box of whatever and put it in containers myself.

We put solar panels on our house.

I feel like we are doing our part.

[Anonymous]

Oui yogurt comes in glass jars

you can make your own ricotta cheese from milk and vinegar or your own mozzarella with milk, vinegar and rennet

Lush sells a lot of bar shampoo, conditioner, other cosmetic items in paper bags

you can get compostable bamboo toothbrushes packaged in cardboard

[Anonymous]

There are "cardboard" containers for drinks (like milk) except there is a thin layer of plastic in many of those.
Also, use less liquids when dry products are available (laundry detergent and bar soap).
Buy fewer drinks and use more tap water. No more drinking straws.
If 9 billion people eat three meals a day, and each meal has two pieces of plastic, do the math.

[Anonymous]

Dog poop bags?
Diapers?

[Anonymous]

When I was a kid dairy products (milk, cottage cheese) came in waxed cardboard cartons (and my grandma saved the cottage cheese containers). I would think those would be more recyclable than the plastic coated kind, but the stuff I buy all comes in plastic.

[Anonymous]

I switched everyone to bar shampoo and conditioner (Ethique), bar soap for the showers. They make bars of lotion too that I intend to try when my current big plastic bottle runs out. I switched to a powder laundry detergent that comes in a recyclable bag as well.

I am really annoyed, though, with the silicon reusable bags for food storage. All of the ones I've bought have stained or the ziplocks stop working. I feel like they are creating a ton of waste - and not really helping at all over using disposable ziplocks. Any suggestions there? I've also never found reusable bags that really replace a gallon ziplock for storage. I'd love some specific suggestions.

For a PP, there are lots of biodegradable dog poop bags out there.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I switched everyone to bar shampoo and conditioner (Ethique), bar soap for the showers. They make bars of lotion too that I intend to try when my current big plastic bottle runs out. I switched to a powder laundry detergent that comes in a recyclable bag as well.

I am really annoyed, though, with the silicon reusable bags for food storage. All of the ones I've bought have stained or the ziplocks stop working. I feel like they are creating a ton of waste - and not really helping at all over using disposable ziplocks. Any suggestions there? I've also never found reusable bags that really replace a gallon ziplock for storage. I'd love some specific suggestions.

For a PP, there are lots of biodegradable dog poop bags out there.

PP, what are you using the gallon ziplock for, exactly?
I sometimes reuse cereal box liners or bread/tortilla bags (dump the crumbs out and they are clean enough to reuse for certain things).
Otherwise, I use containers with lids.
I haven't totally eliminated my use of gallon ziplock this way, but have reduced it.

[Anonymous]

MOMs Market lets you bring you own containers. They weigh it when you come on and then only charge you for what you bought.

[Anonymous]

I reuse produce and bread bags using them to wrap my kids sandwiches. I hardly ever buy bags.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I switched everyone to bar shampoo and conditioner (Ethique), bar soap for the showers. They make bars of lotion too that I intend to try when my current big plastic bottle runs out. I switched to a powder laundry detergent that comes in a recyclable bag as well.

I am really annoyed, though, with the silicon reusable bags for food storage. All of the ones I've bought have stained or the ziplocks stop working. I feel like they are creating a ton of waste - and not really helping at all over using disposable ziplocks. Any suggestions there? I've also never found reusable bags that really replace a gallon ziplock for storage. I'd love some specific suggestions.

For a PP, there are lots of biodegradable dog poop bags out there.

PP, what are you using the gallon ziplock for, exactly?
I sometimes reuse cereal box liners or bread/tortilla bags (dump the crumbs out and they are clean enough to reuse for certain things).
Otherwise, I use containers with lids.
I haven't totally eliminated my use of gallon ziplock this way, but have reduced it.

Off the top of my head, I use gallon ziplocks for freezer storage because they take up so much less space than a pyrex or tupperware. So like for homemade bread when I make a double batch, or homemade cookies. And I need something that actually seals and is sanitary to store food and keep it fresh.

To be clear, I have cut way back on ziplocks. I probably use one box of them every year or even less, but looking to eliminate completely.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I switched everyone to bar shampoo and conditioner (Ethique), bar soap for the showers. They make bars of lotion too that I intend to try when my current big plastic bottle runs out. I switched to a powder laundry detergent that comes in a recyclable bag as well.

I am really annoyed, though, with the silicon reusable bags for food storage. All of the ones I've bought have stained or the ziplocks stop working. I feel like they are creating a ton of waste - and not really helping at all over using disposable ziplocks. Any suggestions there? I've also never found reusable bags that really replace a gallon ziplock for storage. I'd love some specific suggestions.

For a PP, there are lots of biodegradable dog poop bags out there.

You really want compostable dog poop bags, not biodegradable.