shopping local to lose packaging....

When i started this blog i was LOSING IT with the amount of packaging i was seeing go to waste...or to recycle bins. Obvious as it sounds...i have taken to shopping almost exclusively at our local farmer's markets - and after about 5 weeks of buying almost zero packaging - i have come to the realization that most of our food is packaged so it can stay safe on its (unnatural?) journey across the country/state/world...and to stay (unnaturally?) "fresh" on its travels.

So shopping locally has enormous benefits to our environment considering both food miles/transport and packaging.

The local foods that are packaged in unfriendly packaging - i am now campaigning to adopt better options...and my overall shopping experience is so much less disturbing ...it is enjoyable - actually than traversing the isles of supermarkets packed full of foods created with profit as the number one priority.

Some of the local bread i buy - SOL Breads is packaged in cellophane type bags - perfect to be reused for veggie shopping - to store cut pumpkins and other veggies needing some help to stay fresh in the fridge.

The best thing is most local produce is grown by people who care about the taste and nutritional value of their food. As a trained clinical Dietitian - shopping fresh and local has so many nutritional benefits - including the amount of plastic that finds it's way in to our food from product packaging.

the journey to less waste ...refills, concentrates & quality

Each time i go shopping i entertain & embarrass my partner and family by commenting on packaging...taking photos and getting excited about great eco packaging. I have come across quite a lot of companies who care and it is pretty easy to get some thoughtfully packaged items...like concentrated dishwash detergents...eco refills and bulk foods you can put in your own bags.
Here are some of my eco friendly packaging thoughts:

• buy in bulk so you only have one package - & make sure it gets recycled/composted
• buy concentrated (prefer natural) products
• look out for an eco friendly option - quite often amongst an array of hideously packaged products is someone who cares!
• check out for products available in recycled board and not plastic - like clothes washing powder...toilet paper wrapped in recycled paper etc

And here is my other observation...it's not just the packaging that is an issue - the actual products them self can be such poor quality - they are pretty much landfill waiting to happen. For example - cheap plastic lunch boxes that break or don't seal properly. A pack of 10 cheap vegetable peelers - who would need 10?. oh that's why - they break each couple of days.

So buy sticking with quality we are creating so much less waste - products that last a life time.

Here are a few eco friendly products finds i found :)

• reusable, washable dishcloths
• biodegradable natural fibre dish wash sponges
• pet kitty-litter complete with biodegradble bag - yeah!
  

If you ever wonder through a discount store - you will see that most of this stuff is useless - bottle openers that dont open bottles...containers that don't contain things...plastic toy animals that dont stand up...toys that break easily and cant be repaired...appliances that no parts are available for...

OK yes you get the idea - walking into one of those shops will freak me out for days.

So what i am getting at is it isn't just the packaging - it's the product toooooo. This whole trend of buying cheap junk must be causing sooooo much waste and pollution. These things just are not made to last and are greatly adding to our disposable mentality.

Now i am thinking of products and where they will ultimately end up...and how many of these things i will dispose of in my lifetime. Even with clothes and toys - natural fibers like cotton and silk are essentially bio-degradable.

Share you awesome product / purchase choices on our FB page..thanks for reading x Lucinda x

ECO friendly beauty packaging

hi - this blog post is about an Australian beauty/personal care company Pure & Green. This company have put considerable time into selecting the best packaging for their products and have said it took longer to find this type of packaging than it did to formulate the all natural products.

The coolest parts of the packaging are the cardboard lids...see pic and the super concentrated toothpaste which means you get 6 tubes of toothpaste in one (i tried the toothpaste - it is amazing).

So whilst waste is still created...i commend this company for caring...and the best thing we can do as consumers is support companies who care and not support those who dont...and request/demand (depending on your mood) change :)

By creating demand for eco packaging - we are not only saving a few caps and toothpaste tubes...we are creating a demand for NEW packaging alternatives and more eco packaging.

Below is a quote from Pure & Green regarding some aspects of their packaging:

"Our cream and lotions are packaged into airless pumps (made from reyclable PP) but the overcaps are made from 100% post consumer recycled cardboard. These caps can be used as seedling planters once the product is exhausted.

Our liquid products are packaged into PLA which we have manufactured for us in Northern NSW ... if you would like some background info please view this link to a recent blog post http://www.pureandgreen.com.au/blog/?p=432

It seems most brands are adopting LDPE tubes for packaging as this is the most automated form of production and makes sense from a labour point of view. However, LDPE while recyclable in theory is not actually recycled in practice in Australia. The majority, if not all, cosmetic tubes are destined for landfill in Australia. As we manufacture toothpaste, we had to overcome this problem. We developed a toothpaste concentrate which is equal in strength to 6 x 110g tubes of toothpaste (300brushes). So, while using an LDPE tube to package our toothpaste we have in effect saved 5 lots of packaging from ending up in landfill by designing our product as a concentrate. "

It would be incredible if every beauty brand took such care in packaging...this would create considerably less waste to our Planet....but even still - the effectiveness of this packaging depends on the consumer recycling and the efficacy of their local recycling program...but hey they care and it's a great start!!! Thanks Pure & Green for your info and great products :)

product DESIGN is the beginning of eco friendly packaging

Would it be fair to say that most companies create a product and then find the best packaging for it...whether "best" for them means the cheapest, or the most eco friendly?
Some (few) products have minimal environmental impact from their packaging - for example a few hair ties on a piece of recycled card with plant based inks. But what about the quality of these products...how long until those 30 hair ties have mysteriously disappeared...or broken or otherwise land in the "waste category"?
I have been reading up on Cradle to Cradle design...and see that in most cases good packaging & quality products begin in the DESIGN and not to make a cheap product & then figure the cheapest way to pack it...but to make a quality product that will last and at the end of it's lifetime, will return safely to nature or effectively deconstructed and new products rebuilt.
Part of good packaging lies in the design of a product...as LUSSH body products do - they create solid shampoos that do not need packaging.
With packaging and waste such undeniably massive issues - it's time to create products with the end in mind. Cradle to Cradle design is the only viable model i have seen so far to address our future waste issues....the clip below is a great summary...

the lowdown on the squishy-bottle

i have come across a couple of products in pouch/squishy bottles...like these pics & thought i would get the low down on how these compare to rigid plastic bottles. I have verified this info with an eco packaging expert & the news is as good as plastic packaging could be...

In summary...it uses less plastic and is recylcable. If every suitable product was packed in these packages we would have considerably less trash on Earth...

Here is more info from the helpful gentleman @ Sunpouch.

"Here at Sunpouch we use a packaging type called a "Cheer Pack".

Sunpouch and Cheer Packs specifically demonstrate environmental efficiency over traditional rigid packaging in the market by substantial reductions in the following areas:

Cheer Packs manufacturing process consumes minor amounts of raw materials as compared to alternative rigid forms of packaging such as bottles and plastics. Consequently, any waste material produced during the manufacturing process is also minimised. So we consume less making the stuff.

The flat and lightweight construction is a major feature of the Cheer Pack and this contributes significantly in the continued attempt in minimising the carbon footprint. The reduced packaging weight decreases energy consumption during transportation, not only substantially reducing greenhouse gases, but providing cost efficiencies all along the supply chain as well as reducing intangible environmental costs. It has been estimated that it takes nine times more fossil fuel to move glass or rigid packaging around compared to what’s required to move this pouch around. I have heard figures that it is possible to get about a seven-to-one-ratio in space saving transporting the stuff around on trucks.

The compact nature of the Cheer Pack, also significantly minimises landfill compared to traditional rigid packaging. So, from an end-of-life perspective a Sunpouch occupies less than 10% of the amount of space in the landfill as traditional rigid bottle like a glass or palstic bottle. Our Sunpouch caps are manufactured entirely from High Density Polyethylene (HDPE) and is therefore 100% recyclable.

Some more technical specifics for you Luci:

On comparing Cheer Pack with PET/PE film structure with an aluminum can of same size, the environmental impact results really minor for Cheer Pack despite the two packs are very closed in weight. It is noticed that production of solid waste is reduced by 18% and the other indexes like energy consumption, water and air pollution are ranging from 11 and 21% of the corresponding aluminum container, i.e., cans etc.

The scientific comparison between the PET Bottle and Cheer Pack for our type of product indicates also a minor environmental impact of Cheerpacks: all the environmental indexes of Cheer Pack are showing inferior values ranging from 30 to 45%. Less is better. A similar situation is found in respect of the brick type container, where values of Cheer Pack environmental indexes are reduced from 31% to 78% of the effect of brick types. "

Plastic packaging...can with it or without it?

Hi !
I have been busy obsessing over packaging...particularly plastic packaging. With packaging making up 60% of our landfills....creating massive ocean dumps full of plastic..AND an estimated 5% of plastic getting recycled...its clear that some changes are needed...

I think the questions of plastic is can we live with it? NO and can we live without it?...Yes...we have to. There are particles of toxic plastic throughout every drop of the ocean...in every part of our food chain. So what to do?

I have been contacting loads of companies - with mixed & minimal responses...but there is also a lot of positive action & awareness surrounding the way we are literally trashing our beautiful Planet.

Check out these positive links...

Australian Packaging Covenant - encourages companies to review packaging
Plastic Disclosure Project - companies and groups can use this to quantify & track plastic use with the aim of reducing it...just like we do with a Carbon Footprint...the Plastic Footprint
Australian University Bans Bottled Water - a great move...they are providing drinking fountains and water refill options

Below is another email out to a company - I really think organic companies caring for the land need to be sustainable with their packaging. The progress is at the bottom of this blog. Personally - i think this cheese packaging could be a PLA ..or something biodegradable.

Here are the Qs i ask a company when i write to them:

1. Are you concerned about the packaging your company creates and the destiny of this, considering that only a small amount of plastic is recycled and eventually, this plastic is destined for landfill or to end in our oceans?
2. What are your current packaging for yoghurt?
3. Is this biodegradable?
4. What are your current packaging for sliced cheese
5. Is this biodegradable?
6. Are you open to eco friendly options?
7. If not, why not?

I write nice things too...because i need to keep this mission positive...otherwise it is just depressssssing ...

Feel free to share any packaging things with me to feature on the blog or contact a company! Thanks for reading :)

Is the best packaging NO packaging?

The video in this post is by LUSH cosmetics Mark Constantine...LUSH is a multimillion retailer serious about creating products that need no packaging. The company's success shows that many customers are willing to go without packaging. It is especially inspiring to see that Mark has actually put no/minimal packaging into the design of his products.

There must be SOOOO many products that we could by for example...as powders in bio sachets...& then refill a container & add water?...dishwashing liquids etc WOW more companies should design products like this...

In the UK...people can COMPLAIN about excessive packaging...For more information check out UK Parliament Member's website.

I guess it is cool you can complain...but it would be so much cooler if manufacturers were made by law to use eco friendly...or NO packaging.

COLEs may be up for ECO friendly meat packaging

I just got this response from COLES...now off to find the people who could supply this packaging...

Dear Miss Scarman (that's me),

Thank you for email regarding eco packaging of our Coles brand meat.

We referred your comments on to our National Quality team who have advised that the packaging you have described could suit the needs of some of our meat products, particularly those packed in store, with short shelf life and no modified atmosphere packaging. They have also confirmed that we do not add any chemicals to our modified atmosphere packed meats.

Unfortunately this type of packaging would not be suitable for the majority of meat packed outside our stores, as this is packed in a modified atmosphere. They have further advised that it may not meet the legal requirements for our organic meat.

We appreciate you taking the time to contact us. Please be assured that our Quality team will take your feedback into consideration for our future packaging needs and we thank you for your suggestion. We look forward to your future custom at Coles.

Yours sincerely, Jennifer Hamilton

CUSTOMER CARE CONTACT CENTRE Ref. C077778830

2011 ! Let's make it a lucky year for our Planet

hi - i am back...totally rejuvenated...rested & ready to kick some...rubbish in 2011!
I held myself back from writing over the Christmas break just so show i am not totally obsessive compulsive...but i did see the odd thing that needs to be changed.

I'm not sure if it's just me...but i can't help but notice healthy/eco products supplied in really un-ECO packaging. A fine example is alkalizing Parmesan and chili kale chips...a little snack that is going to last a minute or two - safely wrapped thick plastic & foil packaging - guaranteed to keep this snack fresh for a year and to outlive most other wrappings & life forms in landfill.

This seriously looks like something about to be sent in to space...maybe i am wrong - but this does not look like a good eco look.

So in 2011 i am going to focus on these healthy/eco companies so they can get their packaging as good as their product AND of course any other brand that i come across.