Plastic Trash Challenge-Week 2
June 14-June 20, 2009
My efforts at throwing less plastic away were encumbered this week by birthday festivities. My grand total came to about the same as week one: 30 items weighing 7 3/4 ounces.
Recyclable
Silken Tofu Container
Rice Milk Container
Carrot Juice Bottle
I went for a long time without buying carrot juice because of its packaging.[1] It goes bad within a day or two after you open it, so unless you’re feeding a family of four horses, you pretty much have to get it in single serving containers. But somehow when I went vegan I was reminded of its existence (and that it tastes like amazing,)[2] and the proximity of the Odwalla cooler to the pasta section made carrot juice my only (albeit reoccurring) impulse purchase. But no longer. Maybe I’ll get a juicer.
Two Windowed Envelopes
That’s what you get for donating to a good cause, apparently.
Non-Recyclable
Two Nectarine Stickers
Plastic Bag
I used it over and over, but at last it developed a hole.
Produce Tape
Newspaper Bag
Corn Chip Bag
I bought these weeks ago. Out of desperation one night, I finally finished the by-then stale chips sans salsa.
Tempeh Bag
Although I’ve been eating tempeh since I was a toddler, I just found out last week that it’s Indonesian. I’ve also read that it’s not too hard to make your own, so perhaps this bag can be eliminated in the future.
Two Tofu Bags
Vegan birthday brunch = copious amounts of tofu consumption.
Mayonnaise Jar Lid
I believe this dates from a year ago (I cleaned out the fridge.)
Frozen Spinach Bag
I would have bought fresh spinach, but it didn’t look so good, and to get this kind of quantity I would have needed about 7 bunches anyway (those suckers cook down!) So I went with the cardboard box of frozen organic spinach, but lo and behold, it had plastic inside.
Three Fresh Herb Labels
I hate nothing more than those horrendously overpriced fresh herbs carried by most supermarkets that come two leaves to a blister pack. Some herbs at the Berkeley Bowl come with just a twist tie, which is awesome, but others have these plastic labels.
Lid from Breadcrumb Container
I bought these a long time ago and finally used them up. Of course, the recipe I was using them in called for more than I had left, so I went out and bought another box. It didn’t even occur to me that breadcrumbs wouldn’t be vegan, so I didn’t check. Turns out they have eggs, milk and buttermilk in them. Anyone want some breadcrumbs? From now on I’m making my own (which I would have done in the first place if I’d had some old bread.)
Scotch Tape Ball
Yes, I saved all the tape (and wrapping paper) from my birthday presents. I have become one of those people who takes ten minutes to unwrap a gift.
Blister Pack
From this device my dad got me for my birthday, oh-so-cleverly-named The Kill-a-Watt (I think that might be why he bought it) which measures the amount of power drawn by whatever you plug into it. Marketed towards penny-pinchers with too much time on their hands, but perfect for calculating your appliances’ individual carbon footprints!
Seven Tea Bag Wrappers
We made iced tea for the picnic from some old tea I found at the back of the cabinet.
Packaging From Cast-Iron Pot
A gift from my super thoughtful friends (it can go in the oven!) Packaging comprised of some little rubbery things to keep the lid from clanking around in the box and a little plastic bag on the knob.
Packaging From Paring Knife
Also a present. Two little zip ties to keep it in place and a plastic sheath to protect the blade.
[1] And I actually bought this one last week, but didn’t finish it til Sunday.
[2] I honestly cannot understand how it was that carbonated soda took over the world, when carrot juice is clearly so much better. And not only did carrot juice fail to conquer the global market’s taste buds, but it’s at the bottom of the list even among other juices.