14 Easy Ways to Consume Less Plastic

In the last couple of years we’ve tried to consume less plastic at our house.  This not only shows in our garbage can every week (we throw away about 1 1/2 tall kitchen garbage bags a week), it also shows in our recycling.  I used to drag out a bin overflowing with plastic every other week.  Now we generate half the recyclable plastic from a couple years ago.  How did we achieve this?  It wasn’t painful and it wasn’t expensive.  Here’s how:

1.  We switched from buying bottles of juice to buying frozen juice concentrate.  Saves money, uses less packaging.

2.  We buy milk in reusable glass bottles.

3.  We preserve our garden produce by freezing or canning–no more buying preserved fruits and vegetables at the store.  We reuse the glass jars and metal lids each year.

4.  We never accept a shopping bag.  We bring our own and if we forget (because we’re human and sometimes do), we carry our goods out in our hands.  Fortunately, when you have 3 kids, you generally have plenty of hands to carry things.

5.  When the kids are offered plastic trinkets (at the grocery store, at restaurants, etc.) we politely decline.  They understand we have plenty of crap, there’s no need to add more.

6.  Likewise, when we go places we tell our kids ahead of time, “We’re not buying anything, so don’t ask.  We’re going in empty-handed and we’re walking out with only good memories of good times.”  On our last family vacation we brought back some shells and photographs–nothing else.  On a recent trip to play laser tag and video games, the boys handed their tickets to me and we walked out without cashing them in for prizes.

7.  We’ve encouraged our PTA to give out consumable raffle prizes at events instead of bargain bin toys and trinkets.  In our town we have the following locally owned and operated establishments:  drive-in movie theater, miniature golf, bowing alley, ice cream parlor, sub shop, movie/game rental store, family restaurant.  The PTA buys gift certificates to these places for winners–supporting our local economy in a win-win way.

8.  We buy soda and beer in glass containers–glass is 100% recyclable.  It’s not often that we need to buy soda, but we’ve found a locally made brand sold in returnable bottles.  Perfect for parties–the kids love all the flavors and the bottles are smaller-sized, only 7 oz.  When we entertain, we usually serve beer and lemonade and iced tea–the latter made in our own glass pitchers and served in our own glasses.  Healthier and better-tasting than the single-serve options of plastic bottled beverages.

9.  We bought a set of 8 plastic dishes  and plates for outdoor dining a few years ago.  We never buy disposable plastic plates for parties or picnics anymore.

10.  We bought reusable containers for the kids’ lunches and snacks.  No more plastic baggies–and we save money by portioning out bulk snacks instead of buying individually wrapped treats.

11.  Baked treats are made from scratch here.  Instead of Twinkies and Little Debbie cakes (wrapped individually in plastic), I bake a cake or cookies or a pie.  By preparing food from scratch, we generate less waste.

12.  When we buy clothes, we always leave the hangers behind at the store.

13.  We buy bars of soap, never bottles of liquid soap.  We don’t use anti-bacterial anything at our house and all five of us have suffered a total of 3 colds all winter so far.

14.  We opt for the paper-wrapped version of products–paper is a renewable and biodegradable resource, always trumping plastic.  Whether we’re buying paper for our computer printer or a carton of eggs, we buy the kind packaged in paper.  (It sure seems silly to package printer/copy paper in plastic, doesn’t it?)

Some of these things seem obvious, all of them are convenient to do.
Tell us, reader, how do you consume less plastic at your house?