PlasticLess.com

I look for news about plastic reduction regularly. Today Fox is talking about how ConAgra, the makers of many different brands of TV dinners is making a change to recycled trays. This should result in 8 million fewer pounds of trash.

Convincing consumers to stop buying these convenience meals would have a much bigger impact. Making meals from scratch is almost always cheaper and more nutritious than a TV dinner. There is this thing called a sandwich that can be created, stored and consumed without the use of plastic.

There is a bowl of plastic grapes on top of the deli counter at my local shop. Why?

Plastic replicas of food are on my top ten list of pointless uses of plastic. I haven’t gotten around to actually writing a list, sorry.

I am speaking, of course, of unsliced bread.

I can get a loaf from the corner shop without any packaging. It might not be quite that easy everywhere, but small bakeries can be found in most cities in North America. If you grew up on sliced bread, you might have to practice a bit before you master the use of a bread knife. You may also need to get your knife sharpened.

One local bakery does not add preservatives. This takes some getting used to as well. The trick is to avoid over purchasing. French toast is a great way to make use of day old (or two days old) bread. Look for syrup in a metal container, make your own syrup, or just use fresh fruit instead.

Yes, it’s that time of year. Many of the items that the public school system and/or your kids demand that you purchase are typically made of plastic. I have a few suggested alternatives for your shopping list…

Metal rulers are better than plastic in just about every way.

You can find a metal lunchbox to suit just about any child’s taste from Hello Kitty to (wretch) Slipknot.

A Chinese lunchbox seems more practical than the painted kind that we had in our childhood. I remember the beating that my lunchboxes used to take and they were often in a state of disrepair after a month or two. I wish I had documentary proof of the fate of some of my stuff because it would make collectors cry. I’m not a big fan of collectors.

A shoulder bag made of canvas should outlast the cheap nylon items that are more common. A good quality metal pencil case is also a great idea, not only to replace the plastic case, but because there could be less breakage of pens and pencils.

The key aim of this blog is to promote reduced use of plastic. I know as well as anybody that using plastic stuff is almost unavoidable. With this in mind, I am adding a link to some information about which plastics are more hazardous and which ones are less hazardous.

Thegreenguide.com/products/Kitchen/Plastic_Containers

This blog is about reducing our personal consumption of plastic. So far, it has been a hodgepodge of old ideas and new ideas. Old ideas can make a lot of sense, most of the time. Plastic has only become a ubiquitous part of our lives in the last few generations. Before that, other materials were doing just fine at meeting our needs… or were they?

You need to be very cautious about antique items that contain dangerous materials like lead and mercury. I would suggest a ‘better safe than sorry” approach with regards to old cookware, utensils and serving dishes. Even decorative antiques can pose health risks. Looking into the issue of lead poisoning was very depressing for me. I did not know that a proposed ban on lead paint went before the US House of Representatives in 1910 and that it took 68 years before the Consumer Product Safety Commission eventually banned it. Over 4000 tonnes of lead paint had been slapped on walls and toys and various other things in the interim.

I wonder if the push and pull related to chemicals leaching from plastic drinking containers will drag on that long? Actually, I am certain that it will not. Things move faster in the information age. Several companies removed products containing Bisphenol A as soon as the issue started making headlines. Interestingly, I think the scandal about lead in products made in China may has sensitized the media and consumers in such a way as to catalyze the reaction to Bisphenol A.

Another depressing issue involves the modern low watt light bulb. Al Gore et al. want to ban incandescent light bulbs in homes. The present alternative is a CFL that contains mercury. They also contain more plastic than a typical incandescent bulb.

Proponents of these efficient bulbs say that the fact that they contain more hazardous materials and the fact that they take more energy to produce are more than offset by the energy savings. I am worried about the environmental impact of their production because they are presently made in China. I am also worried about the mercury. There have been advances, with some bulbs having 1/5 the amount of mercury of typical CFLs.

I have personal experience with cheap CFLs that did not have the long life that is touted by their promoters. The answer might be higher standards. Right now, they are trying to compete with standard light bulbs. When legislation kicks in this will be less of an issue.

Teflon is a plastic. Using non-stick cookware also precludes the use of metal utensils. Many people choose to use plastic spatulas. I recommend wooden spatulas.

I have a non-stick pan that was supplied with my rented house. I do not use plastic utensils with it. I prefer wooden spatulas. How many plastic spatulas have you destroyed from excessive heat? When the edge of a wooden spatula gets worn and ragged, you can fix it with a utility knife.

Teflon is the only surface to which a gecko cannot stick. I don’t know of anybody that has gecko and eggs for breakfast, and I think that responsible consumers should avoid consuming Teflon cookware.

Polytetrafluoroethylene was discovered by accident during the first half of the 20th century. My generation is the first for which ‘non-stick’ cookware is not a novelty.

A carcinogen is used in the production of Teflon and Dupont paid residents near its plants $400 million out of court after perfluorooctanoic acid was found in ground water.

Cast iron pans are superior to Teflon coated pans in many ways. The proper care of cast iron pans is slightly more complex than with other cookware, but it is worth the effort.

When I was younger, local strawberries came in wooden boxes. Any that were still reasonably clean would be returned on the next visit. The fruit trucks in my present locality have the local strawberries in plastic pint-sized containers. Strawberries are an impulse purchase for me. The lady that was in line in front of me yesterday knew what she had come for and she came with her own container. The hawker dumped three pints into her container and kept the plastic pints. I assume that he was going to reuse them.

I always look to my fellow shoppers for examples of good and bad ideas.

Most breakfast cereals come in a box that contains a plastic bag. I have mostly stopped buying breakfast cereals, but oatmeal is necessary for one family member. Quaker brand sells a box with no plastic bag, at least they do where I live.

I had been buying Jordans because of the conservation aspect and because they taste better. Jordans has a plastic bag.

If you have the option of buying breakfast cereals in bulk, it is worth considering.

It is going to ostensibly be spring soon. I know that many people in northern climates have months to go before things really start to bloom, but I thought I’d talk about picnics anyway.

My childhood memories of family picnics involved a lot of plastic garbage. KFC was often a go to place on the way to the beach. Plastic bags, plastic forks and knives (in their own little bag, of course), plastic tubs of potato salad, buns in their own little bags…

The biggest container was, of course, the bucket. If Kentucky Fried Chicken is something that you must have now and then, why not just get the bucket? You can plan ahead with a jar of your own coleslaw and a jug of iced tea. I used to have a four piece set of enameled metal serving dishes. They get beat up eventually, but they served us well for camping and picnics and also serving groups of children.