Oh help! Oh no! It’ a gruffaloooooo (wrapped in plastic :-/)
Plastic is everywhere.
I think I must have been a bit blind in the past but over the last few months, I’ve really noticed how much plastic surrounds the products that we buy – from toys to food, we can’t get away from it.
Some examples are utterly insane. I can’t remember which shop was the perpetrator but I remember recently seeing a packet of two avocados in a plastic tray and then wrapped in plastic. Arghhh why?!?
So I thought I’d try and have a week of consciously avoiding plastic with the long term hope that I will forge better habits.
So how am I going to try and do this?!
- Remember my damn shopping bags when I go food shopping!
Not my forte but I’m going to leave my lovely canvas bags in the boot of my car so I have no excuse. I feel a pang of guilt every time I’m faced with buying a crappy plastic one now and instead end up just trying to carry/juggle an armful of food back to the car. Not ideal…
- Buy unwrapped vegetables and fruit.
Why buy that broccoli suffocating in plastic when you can purchase its liberated neighbour? It makes no sense really. I’m always baffled when you see identically sized broccoli next to each other but the price differs because one is wrapped and the other isn’t. It’s the same with bagging bananas, just such a waste.
- Use loose tea instead of tea bags
Did you know that in the UK, most teabags contain a thin layer of polypropylene plastic? Crazy. Loose tea tastes better anyway so I’ll be hunting out my teapot before the morning hits.
- No more take away cups!
I love a take away cup of tea or hot chocolate but I won’t be having it in a disposable cup any more. What a waste! There are soooo many beautiful, reusable coffee cups these days so any excuse is tenuous. And some shops give you a discount for using your own cup so all the better. For example: Pret will give you 50p reduction, Starbucks 25p, Costa 25p, Paul 25p Greggs 25p, and Cafe Nero give you double loyalty points when you use your own cup.
I absolutely love these Ecoffee Cups which cost around £8.
- Buy a reusable straw.
Look what I got this week, it’s a bamboo straw from The Zero Waste Club! I know, I’m very easily pleased. BUT it means not using plastic straws that inevitably end up floating around our seas and killing wildlife.
- Re-use and recycle plastic bottles
Laundry detergent often comes in a huge plastic bottle but if you do a little research in your local area, I’m sure you’ll find a company who refills at a discounted price – Ecover is regularly refilled at health shops so ask at the nearest ones to you. Method is my favourite washing brand at the moment. Their bottles are all 100% recycled, you can buy their products in most supermarkets now.
- Look at the little things around your house
Cotton buds are terrible for plastic waste. They are always what you see floating in rivers and oceans whenever the news turns to environmental issues. It’s easily possible to buy biodegradable versions these days so if you really need them for make up application then try and source an environmentally friendly pack. Again, start at a health food shop and explore from there 🙂
- I know the time has now passed but Easter egg packaging always makes me cringe. However, in supermarkets and elsewhere you can now but the egg without all the plastic rubbish around it so please consider this option next year.
So there we go. I know there are many more things I need to consider to truly become plastic-free but it’s a start. And just by thinking about it, I seem to spot plastic more and more around me. It’s in my brain now so registering all the time!
I’d love to hear about your plastic-free achievements.
