How To Start A Waste Free Lunch Program
Oct 9th, 2008 by staff entry
The amount of waste that is generated in lunchtime activities in the workplace and in schools has started to draw the attention of the environmental movement.
Every day employees and students bring in lunches composed of single serving disposable items, plastic cutlery and juice boxes all packed in a disposable bag. Even if you don’t bring a lunch, the amount of waste generated from take-out counters and restaurants is equally troubling. This unnecessary waste creates a heavy burden on the environment.
Waste-Free Lunch Programs at Work and School
Many schools and some businesses are actively pursuing or are considering implementing a waste-free lunch program. To start, here are a few simple guidelines on how you as an individual can make a difference in the amount of waste you generate at lunchtime.
- Pack food in reusable food containers instead of plastic baggies.
- Buy food in bulk instead of individually wrapped items.
- Use refillable drink bottles instead of single serving juice boxes or soda cans.
- Include reusable utensils instead of disposable plastic ones.
- Stop using disposable napkins and switch to washable cloth ones instead.
- Pack lunches in lead-free reusable lunch boxes or bags instead of single use disposable plastic bags.
To illustrate here’s a short video demonstrating how easy it is to implement a waste-free lunch strategy.
How to Pack a Waste-Free Lunch
Take Some Simple Steps
To start, invest in a high quality, lead-free and easy to clean reusable lunch bag. Instead of using plastic baggies, aluminum foil or plastic wrap switch to reusable food containers.
Reusable food containers are a great eco-friendly way to carry many types of food items. If you are using plastic containers then make sure that they are made from a safe plastic. Only use containers marked with recycling number 2, 4 or 5. If you want to avoid or minimize any contact between your food and plastic then there are a few stainless steel food containers available as an alternative.
For hot meals get a high quality thermos or food jar. Make sure they will keep your food hot until it’s time for lunch. Many of the less expensive food jars don’t keep the contents hot very well. Also, make sure that the inside of the food jar is not made from plastic. Heat can aggravate any potential leaching from plastic material. A stainless steel inner lining is a good choice.
Reusable Beverage Bottles
Now for beverages. You can get either insulated or non-insulated stainless steel beverage containers that can be reused over and over again. Klean Kanteen is a leading brand for stainless steel beverage containers. Here again you need to consider price and quality when making a purchasing decision. If you purchase inexpensive stainless steel bottles consider where the savings are coming from. Some brands use thinner material which tends to dent easily while others have had problems with the quality of manufacturing. Bottles with thin walled material and improperly finished weld seams can crack and dent over time. For a quality stainless steel bottle, consider using Klean kanteen, a market leader in this area.
If you are looking for children’s bottles Klean Kanteen, Foogo Thermos and Safe Sippy have appropriately sized bottles that easily fit in children’s lunch bags.
Reusable Utensils
As convenient as plastic utensils are they get used once then are discarded. Just like plastic bottles, utensils take hundreds of years to decompose and use a non-sustainable oil derivative as a material. To solve this problem you can either buy a few inexpensive stainless steel pieces specifically for lunches or use what you already have available in the kitchen.
Simple Waste Reduction Steps
As you can see, by making a small investment in a few reusable items as well as a little planning you can make a difference in the amount of waste you contribute to the environment. You can find a selection of these items at most department stores or purchase them online.
Some Useful Resources
Here are some useful resources and suggestions for making your lunches waste-free.