A massive 174 million tons of plastic packaging gets produced globally per year, yet only 20 percent of this packaging gets recycled! When not recycled, plastic ends up disposed and dumped on our planet, left to contaminate and kill organisms already on the Earth and take up space in landfills.
Plastic is not ideal but things like food packaging helps protect products from being wasted. For example, just 2g of plastic packaging around a cucumber keeps it fresh for 14 days rather than 3! But is that extra 11 days of fresh cucumber worth it? The issue is complex but the goal isn't. Society needs to 'RRR' plastic: REDUCE, REUSE, RECYCLE. Here are some simple’s ways you can keep your three R`s.
REDUCE
Cut back on unnecessary packaging by buying from your local food market or trying out scoop shops and delis. These places should use paper bags. In Thatcham we have a local food market every Friday at the centre which offer a variety of fresh produce.
Support supermarkets that use less plastic - Iceland and Lidl have both shown significant plastic reductions - or companies that are more environmentally conscious about packaging for example Lush, BodyShop and Mango.
Go for products that have less plastic packaging. For example sliced cheese has several plastic sheets inside whereas a whole piece of cheese just has the packaging on the outside. Think smart when shopping.
The British public love tea! Who doesn’t? Most teabags contain plastic so look for brands which use compostable bags or go for loose tea.
If you love fizzy water, instead of buying a new bottle of sparkling water every time why not buy a soda stream. Long term you will save the environment and your bank!
REUSE
Purchase reusable products. For example, a reusable water bottle or a reusable coffee cup! The Government said that throwaway cups should be prohibited altogether by 2023 as part of a 25-year plan to reduce plastic. Get into the habit of reusing.
Reusing bags is a must! Buy yourself a cute tote bag or just reuse a strong plastic bag. Try and stop buying another plastic bag every time you go shopping.
A plastic straw can take up to 200 years to break down! Go without or purchase a reusable metal straw.
Use food tubes for storing food and biodegradable cling film. Or use the popular beeswax wrap, it’s a zero-waste food wrap that can be reused.
RECYCLE
Look for products with recyclable packaging in order to recycle.
Motive yourself and your family to recycle by setting recycle challenges. E.g. whoever recycles the most gets to pick a movie the whole family must watch!
Do some research! Sometimes it’s hard to know what even is recyclable and that’s okay.
DON'T worry if you mess up! Mistakes are human. What is important is that your trying your hardest and slowly this will all become habit. Keep going ♥