Look what I found while poking around tonight :) Check it out, and recycle, recycle, recycle!!!!!
Today when we open a pack of Wrigley's gum, we discovered that they have switched to paper wrappers. This saves about 850 metric tons of foil from going into landfills each year, which is equal to 60 millions cans each year! That's wicked cool that a small change, such as a tiny foil gum wrapper vs. a tiny gum wrapper, can add up to be such a major impact. Babysteps all around and congrats to Wrigley's for making the change! http://www.wrigley.com/global/our-commitment/global-sustainability.aspxI'm smiling thinking that we are chewing gum that has eco-friendlier bubbles....and yes, I recycled the tiny paper wrapper as did Rosebud :)
Since lunchtime waste is a large part of the school waste stream, what kinds of things are being thrown out? Besides wasted food, juice boxes, brown paper bags, and packaging from single serve foods, about "380 billion plastic bags (that's about 1,200 plastic bags a person)" (50 Simple Things Kids Can Do to Save the Earth, 2009) are being thrown away.
Those numbers are staggering! And when I thought about wrapping my foods in petroleum-based plastic that ends up in the landfill, it turned my stomach even more. So, slowly but surely we are changing our ways at our house. We haven't bought ziplock baggies for some time now. Instead we are using Tupperware-type reusable containers, reusable fabric sandwich and snack bags, and aluminum foil. I've purchased several that I really like from SnackTaxi.com, Resnackit.com, and wrap-n-mat.com. Even though they cost between $5-$7 over the long haul they are well worth it, and I know we are not contributing to landfill waste. They are easy to clean, and come in cool patterns too. Although 4 of us use the bags without complaint, I'm still trying to convince Tiger-Lily and Rosebud that these are a great idea; in the meantime, much of their lunch is packed in the reusable plastic-ware, or recycled aluminum foil (that they return to our recycle bin).
