Waste Free Lunches to Save Our Environment

Environmental Flashback to the Sixties

I knew it was bound to happen. I’m reliving some moments from the past.

When I was in my twenties (and the world was in the sixties) one of the organizations I joined sponsored a series of skits demonstrating the various ways to avoid environmental waste. I wrote the script. Somehow in the 40 years since, I and many of my friends slipped back into the wasteful, lazy days of life. Having more spendable income may have had something to do with forgetting or dropping these waste-free habits.

Not entirely forgotten, my old habits die hard. I still catch myself saving and reusing quart size zip lock plastic bags. You can always find one or two hanging from a jar or vase in my kitchen drying out.

What did I do with the sandwich sized ”baggies” as we called them? I don’t recall using that many as I always tried to reuse the grocery store bags that hold the fresh fruit and vegetables while I checked out of the store. These baggies,I recall, are what I packed my kids lunches in during the seventies. Now, I know some people turn them back in to be recycled. Not sure this is any help to the problem of managing the accumulation of trash in landfills (and now in the ocean). We should probably decide to do away with using plastic bags at any time.

Flash Forward to 2010

Now my grandchildren are learning how to cut waste in school, in particular their lunch packing. We find the best way to save on ”baggies” is to start with the kids lunch tote itself. Several websites and blogs suggest using laptop lunch style lunch boxes, many of which we carry on our website including Laptop Lunch Box Bento Systems and Easy Lunch Box. However, other styles, such as the Cool Tote Lunch Sack Grande and Built NY also hold plastic Tupperware style containers avoiding the need for plastic bags. The sizes on plastic containers have changed to include smaller choices for children sized lunches. . I reuse my salsa and other plastic containers and save money at the same time. Also, the flexibility of cloth such as the Cool Tote and Built neoprene lunch bags make them easy to pack.

Newest small bags make big impact.

There’s a new way to avoid using “baggies”. Whoever would have thought someone would have come up with manufacturing reusable sandwich and snack bags? But that’s just what two Seattle mothers did. The clever and simple design of ReUsies sandwich and snack bags is saving us all money and making them successful business women at the same time.

ReUsies are a re-usable alternative to sandwich and snack bag. ReUsies are manufactured in the United States and are 100% cotton lined with leak-reistant nylon and are secured with Velcro closures. Reusies are a small step toward helping create a waste free environment.