To ask for ways to reduce plastic in our household

[jess24x8]

I've seen so many posts recently about reducing the amount of plastic we use on daily basis to help the environment.

I absolutely love the idea and am now trying to find ways to switch my habits and products. First thing I started with was I signed up with my local milk man. What else can I do?

I also think it's important to bear in mind that it's single use plastic which is the problem, not plastic in general.

A few months ago I bought little plastic pots with lids to make jelly in so the kids could take them to school. Buying that type of plastic means that we're not buying individual jelly pots or yoghurts or whatever as I can just decant. Refillable water bottles which you use hundreds of times aren't a poor choice either.

@Fridakahlofan - with the razors, could you recommend any brands? Also, what do you do with the spent blades??

In general I think it's about seeing where the big impact is. So (gross alert) keep an eye on the bin for a week. What makes up most of the plastic? Then how can you reduce that. Lot's focus on shampoo which is fine, but for me that's 3-4 bottles a year, it's the food packaging that is my big impact thing!!

Agree with using what you already have rather than buying new, for the sake of it being ‘better for the environment’.

My colleague spent a fortune on a metal water bottle and bamboo lunchboxes, when she had perfectly serviceable, hard wearing plastic water bottle and lunchbox that would have lasted her years. She threw them away as she didn’t want to be ‘seen with plastic’. Ridiculous.

In her new, environmentally friendly lunchbox, however, remains individually plastic wrapped snacks, fruit pots flown from around the world etc.

Following this thread with interest. I made some changes at the beginning of this year and would like to make some more now they are ingrained.

I tried to make the biggest impact changes first - looked at where we were using single use plastic in biggest volume:
Milk bottles - now delivered by milkman
Fizzy water - replaced by Sodastream (bottles are plastic but last for 3 years)
Stopped using cling film (beeswax wraps plus glass dishes with kids to keep stuff in fridge)
Refillable water bottles for everyone
No takeaway coffee (reusable thermal cup with coffee from home)
I get laundry and dishwasher detergent delivered by smol in minimal recyclable packaging. I like the look of splosh but I'm very wedded to my Method cleaning products- do they compare does anyone know?

Reading this I realise I've slipped into buying packaged fruit and veg from supermarket - I will make better use of box schemes when we are back in school routine. I'm also going to replace hand soap with bars as the bottles run out. I already use on my bathroom and shower.

@1stMrsF I think method are much better than splosh. Splosh good for the refill option but I was not a fan of the washing up liquid and spray cleaner

Yes but if you're trying to reduce plastic, Method doesn't help you do that. Yes you can recycle the bottle, but reduce and reuse comes before recycle.

Other things which we do - I have a little drawstring carrier bag (think it was from Aldi) which folds up really small and lives in my handbag. Super useful and is good for quick shopping trips when you haven't got a bag for life.

For birthdays and Christmas presents for the kids I ask for experiences rather than "stuff", last year my parents paid for them all to do Go Ape, for her birthday DD got cinema vouchers.

I am conscious about disposable clothing too, we don't see it as plastic but polyester and other manmade fibres are exactly that. I wear things until they are falling apart and would never just wear an outfit once and then discard. Probably 50% of my wardrobe is second hand.

i'm also a keen craft fan but won't buy things like glitter as it's the worst sort of microplastics. Have also stopped buying acrylic yarn for the same reason.

Thanks @Jebuschristchocolatebar.

I do find Method lasts a long time so have already reduced compared to big brand products, but agree it would be better to refill ideally.

Seriously tho, plastic? Who is actually bothered

Forgot we also order toilet roll with no plastic packaging. Ours is cheeky panda brand. But I think you have lots of options in the UK

Seriously tho, plastic? Who is actually bothered

Lots of people, actually.

Some excellent suggestions here, thanks all. And actually the one about using up what you have before buying eco-friendly alternatives is a good one budget wise too.

I'm a cheeky cow who when buying fruit and veg in say, Asda, if I can't get what I want loose, I'll bring my plastic wrappers back on my next visit and pop them into their carrier bag recycling bin. In fact last night I had a few spare small string bags that I use for loose bits. So once I'd paid I actually unwrapped my radishes and put them in a bag dumping the carrier on the way out. But I'm weird.

Yes to Cheeky Panda loo roll. It's really soft too

Loads of people who want a planet for their children and grandchildren are really bothered.

Don’t buy laudry detergent at all. Use a laudry egg. I have eco eggs and although the initial outlay is around £25 there is enough in the kit to do 720 washes.
I buy lose fruit and veg from a local greengrocer but sometimes I need top ups from the supermarket. I try to only go to Morrison’s as they are the only supermarket I know who sell cucumbers not wrapped in plastic.
Meat I buy in a butchers, lose off trays which then goes into just one plastic bag which I wash and reuse as a bathroom bin liner.
I make my own kitchen cleaner and I bottle of star drops makes up enough to last a good 6 months.
I still use bleach and limescale remover on the loos but I now use less but leave to soak longer.
Shop less and don’t buy unless I really need it.. so no shoes or bags just because they look nice and are in the sale.

I'm watching this with interest as you can't really recycle plastic here except for plastic bottles which is a complete pain in the arse .

I have also stopped buying bottles of soft drink like coke. I now buy tins.
I know both are recycleable but 50% of tins are recycled as aposed to 10% of plastic bottles.
My cats are also back on tinned food as my council won’t take the pouches in the recycling.

Seriously tho...

I see you are doing your bit for landfill by reducing letters.

I agree about small steps. If everyone took even one small step, surely it would make a difference.

We have milk delivered in bottles and a new zero waste shop has just opened which I'll be using.

Don't use any wipes. Post menopause so no tampons or pads (as I'm not sure I could have gone reusable for that). Reusable water bottles and lunchboxes.

I started using washing powder in a box - pretty sure it's cardboard. I have masses of clothes so I'm knocking new purchases on the head for a few months.

Once the cling film runs out (probably in about a decade, I hardly use it anyway), I'll move to the wax wraps.

Etc etc etc.

And then Mr Kipling goes and does this

Absolutely great suggestions! I'm glad I posted on here as I was really stuck. Agree, will be taking one step at a time to help save the planet. Thanks all!

I’m reading this with interest. Our plastic is crazy here. It’s mostly meat trays and freezer bags. Because the kids all eat different meals I tend to batch cook and portion up in freezer bags. Also ds1 only eats Sainsbury’s cod fish fingers which come in a plastic tray. So that’s one every 3 days.

I tried block shampoo and it was rubbish. Also i’m struggling with hard soap as the kids can’t get the hang of it and it makes the sink scummy - need soap dishes I think.

Don't buy soft drinks in plastic bottles. They're really bad for you anyway.

If you use liquid shampoo, shower gel, mouthwash etc, use less of it - most people use far too much. Same is true of toothpaste.

Just buy less stuff generally.

Sainsbury's say you can bring your own container to their deli counters. To a pp it may be worth just asking in the butcher's if they will just put it in a container instead. I could do a lot more than I do.

Good idea to buy bigger packs of crisps and use paper bags for portions. I do this with popcorn actually for packed lunches.

Things I already do:

Reusable sanitary pads are so nice to use compared to disposable ones.
Shampoo bars and soap bars.
Flannels.
Cloths for cleaning (no wipes).
Use washed out jars for storing food in the fridge. I buy clingfilm still but much less.
No more bottles of lemonade etc. Tap water is healthier, cheaper and no bottle to dispose of.
Chillys water bottle for out and about.

I'm pleased with these but want to do more.

I have some old towels so I will cut them up for cleaning cloths. I do use my 40 year old Terry nappies for mopping up cloths, but they are slowly disintegrating.

I sadly can't use a homemade vinegar based cleaning product, autistic ds has pretty much banned vinegar from the house (much to dh's annoyance)

I've found shampoo tricky to get right. I've tried loads and learnt things along the way. I've found that cold processed /pressed shampoo bars do not work! This is the way they make soap, but doesn't translate to shampoo. My favourite is little blue hen, which leaves my hair as nice as standard shampoo! Plastic free, palm oil free, and not extortionately priced www.littlebluehensoap.co.uk/