Reduce, Reuse, Recycle
There’s a huge marketing push regarding Recycling and reduction of food packaging at the moment, and all the directives are coming from consumers, not industry. Consumers have cottoned on to the fact that price rises cannot be the result of fuel prices alone. Packaging and supplementary marketing materials all add to the cost of the product.
We are filling an extra 1-2 recycling bags a week now compared to this time last year, and we’re not buying a noticeable amount more than usual. The only factor we can attribute this to is the increased bulk caused through packaging.
Yogurts and dairy products are now being shrouded in cardboard and individual serves of food contained within an outer are all adding to the waste products making their way to landfills across the UK.
What can you do to help reduce waste?
Buying larger serves of products then dividing them yourself is one option. For example, why buy 4 individual serves of yoghurt when you could buy a large pot, and the same goes with soft drinks too. 500ml bottles are 88p each whereas a 2 litre bottle is often £1.20 or less.
Switching to products that have responsible packaging practices will help alleviate the problem, and force rival companies to follow suit.
An initiative we will be trialling is shopping bi-weekly, purchasing larger servings and dividing them, reducing the CO2 emissions caused by transport and buying our groceries from market stalls every other week. Our delivered groceries are packed in more bags than is really necessary, and we already hand unwanted bags back to the driver and recycle these at the supermarket where possible.
Our council (Wandsworth) takes an active role in recycling, delivering plentiful supplies of recycling bags every 6 weeks, yet some councils in the greater London area have no recycling facilities at all (the residents struggle to get these services provided).
It’s never too late to start recycling, but don’t wait longer than you have to. By changing your buying habits or actively recycling packaging you are doing your bit to reduce waste and harm to the environment.
Packaging is a huge problem and I agree 100% with your comments and suggestions.
The bottom line is SUPERMARKETS.
They have huge power now that independent traders - and dairy farmers - have been forced out of business because of price competition. Most shoppers are so focused on bargains and bulk buying they don’t consider any other aspect of what their shopping habits are doing to the environment.
To my jaundiced eye it seems that we have all become too greedy for choice and extended opening hours, so we’d rather go one-stop shopping than source goods locally. There must be a responsible celebrity out there who can do for environmental issues what Jamie Oliver did for school dinners!
Posted By Suzette | June 26th, 2006 at 3:13 pm