Waste Prevention World

Shipping and Packaging Articles

• Grocery shopping with the four Rs in mind
• Reducing food waste by planning ahead
• General packaging reduction techniques
• Reduce packaging waste

Grocery shopping with the four Rs in mind

Goal: To encourage readers to shop with waste prevention in mind.

Walking into a grocery store can be an overwhelming experience: there are so many choices. What brand? What size? What flavor? What packaging??? By keeping the four R's in mind -- Reduce, Reuse, Recycle and Rebuy (or Buy Recycled) -- you can reduce waste, and save money, all by the simple process of shopping.

How do you apply the four Rs when shopping?

It's easiest to shop with the first R -- Reduce -- in mind. Look for ways to get more product and less packaging for your money. Take dry breakfast cereals for instance. Most are available in large, family-sized boxes, which reduces packaging over time. The idea of buying in larger size holds true for many products, from detergents to tomato sauces and pastes. Second, don't package products that don't need it. Fruits and vegetables are prime examples. Apples and carrots can be bought loose (or, if necessary, be put in a plastic bag brought from home). Third, reuse your paper, plastic, or cloth bags. And fourth, carry a shopping list to reduce the amount of impulse shopping you do, thereby reducing unnecessary waste.

The second R -- Reuse -- is also important. Buy groceries like juice, lunch supplies and condiments with reusable containers in mind. Juices can be purchased in concentrate form to be mixed in your own reusable containers. You can reduce a tremendous amount of lunch waste by avoiding single serving containers.

The California Integrated Waste Management Board (CIWMB) has compiled some statistics that speak to the urgency of implementing the credo of Reuse. The CIWMB determined that the average student disposes of 540 paper bags, disposable juice packs, and plastic sandwich bags a year. Multiply those numbers by the millions of students eating lunches in California schools and you begin to appreciate the need for more responsible shopping habits. Remember, many condiments like ketchup, mustard and salad dressing can be purchased in large containers to reduce waste.

Don't forget to also buy with Recycling -- the third R -- in mind. If you can't reuse an item, or plan to dispose of it, make sure the item is recyclable. Typically, this means it is cardboard, glass, aluminum, tin, or specific kinds of plastic. For example, No. 1 and No. 2 plastics are readily recyclable. (If you are not sure whether the plastic container is a No. 1 or 2 plastic, and therefore can be recycled, ask store management. And if they don't know, ask them to find out!). Recycling is important, but it is often more effective to prevent waste before it is generated in the first place. That's why the first R -- Reduce -- is the top priority.

Finally, Buy Recycled -- buy products made with recycled material. Purchasing these products helps turn waste reduction strategies into economic development opportunities. The packaging on many products lists whether recycled material is used. Buying these products helps "close the loop," and because these products use fewer resources, you will be helping the environment.

Buying with the four Rs in mind can help build up the piggy bank and help the [insert County/City name] reach its state waste reduction goals. What better reason to shop responsibly and help your community to do its part to help avert a waste crisis in California.

(This article reprinted -- with some modifications -- with permission from the City of Davis.)

Reducing food waste by planning ahead

Goal: To encourage readers to prevent food waste.

Food. A lot of our time, money, self-image, social contacts, even childhood memories are bound up with food in some way. Unfortunately, food also plays a big role in the mounds of waste taken to your local landfill each and every day. Much -- if not most -- of this food-related waste could, and should, never even make it into your waste basket.

The simplest way to reduce food waste, of course, is to reduce the potential for waste right up front. Buy the kinds and amounts of food which you anticipate that you, and any likely eating companions, can consume in a reasonable period of time. Be imaginative with leftovers. Freeze excess items before they spoil. When some discards are unavoidable, consider using a garbage disposal or a compost pile. If you begin composting, be sure to check on recommended methods with the (City/County Waste Management Department), the library, garden center, or book store.

When eating out, order appropriately sized portions if there's a choice. Share items at places you know tend to have bigger portions than you can eat alone. Suggest that the restaurant not serve you a side dish if you know you don't want it. (Assure them that there will be other customers who are crazy about macaroni and cheese or those funky looking vegetables from outer space.) Encourage the manager or chef to offer variously sized portions -- or sharing -- if these options aren't available. Bring leftovers home in a "doggie bag" (preferably not a giant-sized nonrecyclable container), or, if you pride yourself on being the supreme waste preventer, bring your own doggie bag to the restaurant.

And don't forget to recycle any containers that might be left after food and beverages are consumed - for example, pickle, salsa, or peanut butter glass jars, aluminum or plastic soda containers, tin cans, or fiberboard boxes.

Finally, if you're going on a picnic or having a group in for a casual meal, try using reusable utensils or buying recycled paper products. This helps prevent waste and reduces the number of natural resources that we use in a ritual that most of us look forward to three times a day.

(This article reprinted -- with some modifications -- with permission from the City of Davis.)

General packaging reduction techniques

Goal: To increase the reader's awareness of packaging and encourage waste prevention.

Every year, Californians generate approximately 15 million tons of waste that is merely packaging for the actual products we buy. This packaging includes the cardboard and paper wrappers on fast food, the nice camouflage surrounding gifts under the Christmas tree, and the layers upon layers of plastic, styrofoam and other packing materials that always seems to be getting in your way.

There are, no doubt, several important reasons for packaging. Some of them are practical -- such as protection against breakage of products -- and some of them are aesthetic. Regardless of the motives, however, packaging represents one of the most promising areas in terms of reducing the river of waste flowing into landfills.

The concept behind packaging is often sound. It prevents tampering, keeps products -- particularly food -- fresh, and often provides valuable product information. Yet most packaging is only used once before being thrown away.

Remember, you, too, make packaging decisions on a daily basis. You, therefore, can make a difference.

Many everyday household goods have more than one life to live. Before throwing away bags, containers and other items, ask yourself if you can safely use the item elsewhere in the house. For example, you could use coffee cans and similar food containers for storing items such as nails, buttons, tacks and food. Or turn them into a flower pot. Extending a product's life in this way helps slow down the rate at which California's landfills are filling up. It can save you money too.

Consider the additional lives simple items such as a toothbrush can lead. It can become an indispensable household cleaning tool to be used on that old typewriter, new computer or maybe even hard-to-get-to sections of the old car engine sitting in the garage. The Sunday newspaper comics can be transformed into original, and environmentally-responsible, gift wrapping paper. You can reuse an old cardboard box to ship a birthday present to your brother or sister instead of buying new boxes or gift wrap.

Turn recycled paper into greeting cards. Not only would such a project be fun for the kids, but you'll be surprised at the fond reaction you'll get from friends when you start making and sending eco-friendly cards for special occasions or as an excuse to say a simple "Hello!"

Old clothing that is not even fit for the thrift store should not necessarily be thrown away. You can update clothing by adding new buttons or by lowering -- yes, even raising -- hemlines. Ask your local dry cleaner if you can return hangers. Also, request that your clothes not be wrapped in plastic. And build a newspaper box so the newspaper delivery person doesn't have to burden you with rubber bands and protective rain bags.

A few other tips: Use both sides of a piece of paper for writing notes before recycling it. Save colored paper, egg cartons and other packaging for use in arts and crafts projects at day care facilities, schools or youth and senior centers. Turn used lumber into birdhouses, mailboxes, compost bins or other woodworking projects. Jars can make great cookie cutters; a peanut butter jar can be used to store leftovers or serve as a vase for flowers.

Reducing packaging techniques is not just a hobby for the home, but is slowly becoming standard business practice at a growing number of companies throughout the world. Herman Miller, Inc., for example, saves over $1 million annually by using cartonless or reusable furniture packaging.

Whether at work or in the home, become aware of opportunities to prevent waste by reusing material that used to fill up the trash can. You'll be surprised how less often you'll have to make the trip out to the outside trash can and how much further those dollars will go.

Reduce packaging waste

Goal: To encourage readers to reduce packaging waste.

Attention: All homebodies, couch-potatoes, and outlet store kings and queens. It's the perfect time to be attentive to reducing your waste (Your waist may need reducing too, but that's a subject I won't touch.) This type of waste reduction is good for public health, as well as the financial health of [insert local information].

Packaging is one of the chief contributors to California's, and the nation's, waste management dilemma. It accounts for a least a third of the volume of America's trash. Much packaging has valid uses. But much of it also is completely frivolous with no real functional value. Many products, for example, are sold in packaging that has no basic purpose other than to attract attention or make the product appear larger. The volume of this waste is frequently, and amazingly, excessive.

Excessive packaging practices are not only wasteful and environmentally unsound, but also costly, to you, the typical consumer. The Environmental Defense Fund notes that $1 of every $10 we spend on food, for example, pays for packaging. When evaluating which of several products to buy, a cost-conscious and environmentally careful shopper should therefore consider the product's packaging characteristics before buying.

Several terms have been coined to describe this "stop waste before it happens" approach. The terms are "waste prevention" and "precycling." These terms refer to how shoppers should think about their purchasing decisions: avoid overpackaged, disposable, and nonreusable or nonrecyclable products. Avoid, avoid, avoid, avoid.

If enough shoppers eschew mispackaged and overly packaged goods, manufacturers will eventually get the message that something's wrong with their products and modify them if they want to stay in business. And, whenever it's possible (such as in locally owned stores), shoppers can tell their retailer how a product's packaging affects their purchasing preferences. If enough people do this, stocking patterns will change, and your community will be doing its part to better the world we live in.

In addition, shoppers can decline bags in which to carry their purchases whenever they can handle the purchases without them (carrying a canvas tote or a previously acquired shopping bag is helpful).

When packaging cannot be avoided, its recyclability should be considered. To recycle corrugated boxes -- boxes contracted into parallel grooves for added strength -- remove all packing materials and flatten them before placing them on the curb for pickup. Noncorrugated boxes such as those for food, shoes and holiday gifts may be put in with recyclable paper.

Avoidance or reduction of waste is the highest form of recycling in the broadest sense: it keeps resources out of the waste stream and in the "useful stream." Consumers should keep this in mind when making everyday purchasing decisions. (This article reprinted --with some modifications -- with permission from the City of Davis.)

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Last updated: April 21, 2008