Plastic free living

[stargirl1701]

Has/Is anyone worked towards this? I have just started and could use a buddy. I feel quite overwhelmed tbh. I'm hyper aware of all the plastic in my life at the moment. It seems a momentous undertaking right now.

[silversixpence]

Marking place, although we are far from being plastic free. What do people do with plastic bags that food comes in eg fruit and veg? Do you recycle with normal plastic bags?

[stargirl1701]

I have bought some 'produce' bags and I'm trying to buy all my fruit and veg loose. It's ok at the moment because we are buying a lot of local berries but it will be harder in the winter when it's back to supermarket fruit.

[stargirl1701]

www.onyabags.co.uk/onya-weigh-fruit-and-veg-reusable-bags-chilli

[Slimmerforsummer]

I'm transitioning too.
All our plastic products are bpa free but I want to gradually move to glass and stainless steel.

My next purchase will be bottles for us to travel with. I have one by good life but paint is chipping off. I do love it though. Toddler def needs a decent one as she will use it more than we use ours.
We bring have Pyrex dishes ( admittedly with plastic lids but I can't see an airtight alternative) to butchers. I made bags from old shorts though they need replaced soon.

[Slimmerforsummer]

Gah! Obv a typo- bags from shirts, not shorts!

[specialsubject]

eating seasonal has a lot to do with this; fruit in the winter should be apples and stuff that stores or ships without air freight. That way you can reduce the packaging.

just wish Aldi would sell stuff loose, but it doesn't work with their price model.

[Slimmerforsummer]

Going to bump this to say I bought some Lunchbots bento boxes and Klean kanteens. The kanteens do have plastic lids though. The loop cap has a stainless steel part that means the water doesn't touch plastic, and the baby sippy has a silicone valve. Not 100% convinced of safety of silicone but def happier than with #5.
The cafe lids are just #5 but no way around it atm.
So far I'm really happy with them and the lunchbots cinco is fab for my toddler who loves to graze. We have used them for picnics every day since they arrived ( it's been summer holidays here since end June) sometimes just sitting at kitchen table but my girls love the novelty.

So next on my list is stuff to freeze food in.
As I said above I have some Pyrex with lids. I know these arent recyclable which is a real negative but my mum has some Pyrex that she had when I was little so I'm expecting a long life. Obv plastic lids won't last as long either and, well, they are plastic!
Figuring I will keep using these for freezing things like lasagne and cottage pie- things that need to be frozen flat. (Though of course could freeze on their side once contents are frozen!)

What I need is something to hold chips, chicken nuggets etc in (we make our own) things that will be frozen then put into other container for longer term storage.

Any ideas?

Sorry for essay!

[stargirl1701]

www.lifefactory.com/catalog/baby-accessories

[stargirl1701]

I have the Pyrex too for storage. I got them cheaply in TK MAXX. I am toying with beeswax as a seal. Again, US based.

[stargirl1701]

abeego.com

[stargirl1701]

Does the shipping make this unethical?!!

[stargirl1701]

Found a UK supplier!

www.thewisehouse.co.uk/ourshop/cat_953692-Bees-Wrap.html

[stargirl1701]

Not sure if this idea works in the freezer but it will in the fridge.

[stargirl1701]

Ideas for freezing here:

www.rodalesorganiclife.com/food/freeze-your-garden-haul-without-using-plastic

[chocolatemartini]

Following. Very upset by the plastic in my life. Want to do much better although at the moment I'm unlikely to manage plastic free. Please inspire me with all your substitutions and lifestyle changes. I also bought the Kleen kanteen cups recently. I use plastic food bags for storing food but wash and dry them and they last for ages- one lasted over 3 years of constant reuse, in and out of the freezer etc.

[chocolatemartini]

I've also made a no plastic toys rule unless they are second hand. Does this make any sense?! Is it like saying you're a vegetarian who wears leather or something? Actually I am a vegetarian who wears leather. Hmm

[stargirl1701]

We try to stick to second hand toys as a general rule anyway.

[stargirl1701]

I feel like I fell down a rabbit hole with this. I just keeping seeing more plastic everywhere I look! The recycling wheelie bin is full every fortnight.

[Bunbaker]

I struggle with milk. We no longer have a milkman and therefore can only buy milk in plastic bottles as there is no alternative where I live.

[stargirl1701]

I did find ethical dental floss!

www.healthjunction.co.uk/eco-dent-gentlefloss-mint-40-yds-36-57-m?manufacturer_id=498

[stargirl1701]

I cannot find milk in glass. I buy Scottish milk but it is really hard to trace exactly where it is from.

[chocolatemartini]

I'm very pleased to find some kindred spirits here. Even my DH things I'm a bit over emotional about plastic.

Will start by sharing some positive stuff. Happy to be challenged at any point if things I'm doing aren't actually as green or ethical as I hope.

I work in central London and love coffee, but have taken to carrying a stainless steel travel mug and asking for coffee in my mug.

All new toys have been wooden or metal or second hand Lego for the past year and I have encouraged relatives to do the same (limited success in that respect!)

We have taken an allotment plot in an effort to grow our own fruit and veg (erm and have hust covered half of it in black plastic...)

We get a veg box from a fairly local biodynamic farm. Some stuff comes in plastic bags & punnets but generally much better than supermarket packaging

Got to go to sleep now. Will be back!

[stargirl1701]

Hello, chocolate!

I'm up feeding DD2

Toy wise, so far, so good. DD1 is 3 in Sep but we don't have many plastic toys - two gifts of a tea set and a Dyson from relatives. GPs prefer to put money into Junior ISAs, thankfully.

[Slimmerforsummer]

We have almost all wooden toys though she has some plastic noisy stuff from grandparents. I did buy a cosy coupe and a little tikes climbing frame though (second hand) and we have a plastic sandpit from when dd1 was small

I checked with Pyrex and they confirmed their lids are BPA free. They are also replacing 2 damaged ones free of charge. Yay! The lids won't be touching the food and so will keep it til a better alternative comes up.

Our 17 month old just uses our plates and bowls rather than kids plastic stuff, and we got her some kids stainless steel cutlery

Now I've got storage sorted it's time ti start looking at the food we buy.

We grow some food but I'm not v good. Too much of a fair-weather gardener.

Even in our farmers market you can't avoid plastic containers- eg strawberries are prepackaged- though there is a guy who sells oils that you bring your own bottle for!

Our milkman delivers milk in plastic bottles so we are stuck!

What I notice most are juice bottles, punnets from berries and grapes, and yogurt pots. We have a yogurt maker ( plastic!) but I've found it unreliable so it's sat unloved in a cupboard. Might get an electric one. Today I spent just over a tenner on yogurt for a week. I think it could pay for itself quickly but haven't researched any, never mind checked if they contain plastic.

We grow strawberries, raspberries, blackberries, blueberries and apples. We set up a barter with a friend for extra strawberries :)

Juice... Well we need to wean ourselves off juice. Must admit since we got the klean kanteens we have all been drinking more water. I'm actually craving it now. But sometimes I just want something tastier. Guess over time I'll not need to as much.

Anyone switch away from disposable San pro? I mostly use a combo of cloth pads and a silicone cup but have done disposables on hand for emergencies.
My cloth pads as have a layer of plastic ( laminated fabric for their waterproof layer) as I didn't like the alternatives. I use cloth nappies on DD, again with laminated fabric layer in them. They won't be going anywhere either!

Really should go to sleep... Sorry for my ramble!

[Slimmerforsummer]

Also meant to say thanks for links star

I'm not sure I agree with the one saying aluminium foil and wax paper are good alternatives?!

Lakeland have a few small canning jars but they are pretty expensive.
Since most of what I'll be freezing isn't a liquid, I'll prob try regular jam jars, and buy one set of the canning jars. Figure of I keep one meals worth per glass jar it'll help reduce risk of freezer burn ( fingers crossed!)