Reducing single/throwaway use plastic - ideas please?

[LtGreggs]

So I watched the recent BBC documentary and have decided that this family needs to take action to reduce the plastic we chuck out (or send to "recycling" haha...)

Bathroom - I'm basically going to move us to bar soap & bar shampoo & bamboo toothbrushes. I think I'll be left with contact lens cleaner and medicine bottles, but that's quite low volume.

Cleaning stuff - I'm going to buy the big 15l refills from ecover or wholesale suppliers and decant those in to our existing stock of spray bottles as required. This will still mean some new plastic but lots less.

But I need ideas for food please. I cook mostly from scratch, with some helping along from supermarket prepped stuff. But last few nights dinners still involved LOADS of plastic wrapping. Meat trays, veg wrapping (just on tomato, cucumber, carrot bag etc - standard stuff), plastic bags inside cardboard packaging, plastic packing on pasta & pulses, films on top of malinated paper/plastic pots etc etc.

Any tips for reducing this please?

Me & DH both work full time, so I'd really like it to be fairly easy to source (ideally supermarket or online delivery)??

Thanks. I've got some cider vinegar I'll definitely try that.

@TwigWonder - absolutely no sucking thingies will stay at our tiles. They are not smooth and an absolute nightmare. We spent a fortune on various ones and nothing stayed.

The other issue is that DD and I do have very different hair, we need two shampoos. I need a different bodywash thanks to skin problems.

Whoever thought a shower cubicle the size of a slim human with not much space to even turn is a good idea should be shot. Waiting and gazing at the saving account to finally sort this mess out.

absolutely no sucking thingies will stay at our tiles. They are not smooth and an absolute nightmare. We spent a fortune on various ones and nothing stayed.

We stick ours on the glass door but I expect you've already tried that.

Mission update and some more questions:

I bought the Who Gives A Crap toilet roll - it seems OK, but turns out it was shipped from China. The Sainsbury's own brand (plastic wrapped) is made in UK. Aaaaagh - what is the right trade-off between plastic and miles?

Of the snacks/biscuits that I bought in the weekly Sainsbury's online shop, I had chosen only ones that the app listed as packaged in "card" or "carton" (random selection of unusual brand breadsticks and crackers!) - however every single one arrived with a plastic inner bag and/or tray. The meat that I bought, which I knew was going to be plastic wrapped, had also been put by the pickers in to a second plastic bag per item. I did manage to not buy any plastic bottles or tubs - though partly just by not ordering any yogurt or ice cream, will see if we miss it!

Next week must try the butcher / greengrocer thing. Am going to have to plan it in to my diary.

I bought Who Gives a Crap toilet rolls and they were fine but the huge box was left on full display on my doorstep while I was out. I didn't realise it came from China and think you have a point re the transport costs to the environment.

It comes from China?! Oh no. I didn't realise that. I tried it but didn't like it. They're meant to be double rolls but didn't seem to last any longer.

Hmmm I didn’t realise that either. Something else to continually look into, where everything comes from 😄😫

I second Splosh cleaning products and handwash. I have noticed a big reduction in plastic bottles in the short time I've been using them. Also second the Soda Stream idea. Initially we had a plastic bottle one but they bottles then need to be replaced every year or so. We now have the glass version (machine plastic), but bottles are glass which we much prefer.

Re food, its difficult as everthing is wrapped in bloody plastic!! We have however started buying a gammon joint and boiling ready for slicing rather than buying multiple packets of ham. I'm also looking for local alternatives..

Thing is, rotting food (and card) creates methane which is a much more potent greenhouse gas than CO2, so those plastic inner layers in boxes have their use, especially seeing as they only weigh about half a gram.

I'm trying now to recycle all plastic bags from packaging, which means taking them to the supermarket. I've repurposed one small thick plastic bag to stuff all the others into. So given the choice I'll go for the bags of veg as the stretchy plastic then gets recycled, over the ones in containers which are recycled but have non-recyclable film round.

My main aim is to try to reduce plastic toys and such entering the house - not buying magazines with the plastic crap toys on for the kids but will buy books, not buying new computer games in dvd boxes, only second hand, not getting glow sticks or light-up stuff at the fair, not buying more household appliances when old ones still work (though modern ones are more efficient) - we use freegle a lot.

Some friends of mine have been evangelising the Who gives a crap loo roll, but aside from the shipping, the processing of bamboo or wood to make pulp and paper is the main source of emissions and depends on the energy source. Lots of European paper is made using hydroelectric power. Precious little hydro in China. I'll stick to Lidl.

I have switched to Ecover zero mainly as a relative is allergic to many things, but buying it in bulk makes it as cheap as supermarket stuff, and less packaging.

I've just identified a space in the kitchen where we can collect all the plastic bag type stuff to send back to supermarkets.

Lots of folk have recommended the splosh products - I will try the refills once we've used up our current stuff.

I absolutely agree with the 'no plastic tat' approach.

I'm sure you are well on your way op but I came across this website earlier great for reducing plastic in every day living and they plant a tree for each order too www.danuworld.com/index/ref/64/