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TIME TO BAN ALL PLASTIC PACKAGING FOR GOOD SOUNDS IMPOSSIBLE, RIGHT? WRONG!

Source: Facebook/EvowareWorld

Sustainable solutions are being developed in ever growing numbers, offering the conscientious consumer viable green alternatives to the blight of plastic packaging.

From edible cups made from seaweed to megastores encouraging customers to bring their own bags…

Plastic packaging is more than just a nuisance for the environment, and unfortunately that seems to be the standard the world over. Yet, given the choice most consumers would likely choose a sustainable packaging option, however they aren’t yet being presented to us on a large scale. That said, there are alternatives being developed and rolled out around the globe, so now it’s time to promote and adopt these sustainable solutions and ban plastic packaging altogether.

THERE ARE ALTERNATIVES TO SINGLE USE PLASTIC WASTE SO… If you live in the UK, sign the petition to urge the UK government to make lawas to ban retailers from using plastic and other non-biodegradable packaging. Source: Facebook/BrightVibes

Evoware products are eco- friendly, biodegradable or even edible and healthy for the body

There are already biodegradable packaging alternative materials readily available today for example Evoware. This seaweed-based packaging is not only biodegradable, it’s also edible! (See main image)

Evoware is a socially responsible enterprise that elevates an environmentally friendly lifestyle and provides innovative value to urban society. Through Evoware’s products, people evolve to be closer to nature and live a more responsible and sustainable life. Evoware say they are here to be the eco-solution for plastic waste problems. Their products are eco- friendly, biodegradable or even edible and healthy for the body. 

‘We use seaweed as our raw material. Our impact is not just on the environment but also on the livelihood of seaweed farmers. To achieve that, we always put in our heart the two core values: INNOVATION and COLLABORATION.’

Source: Evoware.id

Onya make a range of different bags and packaging for those who wish to avoid single-use disposable plastic.
Onya resuable bags and accessories Onya make a range of different bags and packaging for those who wish to avoid single-use disposable plastic. Source: Onyalife.com

Good on ya, Onya!

Onya has grown into a company that prides itself on creating high quality, useful, reusable products for your everyday life that can easily be kept ‘On You’.

From reusable shopping bags, produce bags, backpacks & coffee cups, to one of the highest quality stainless steel drink bottle ranges on the Australian market, Onya products are responsibly made in China. 

Wherever possible their products are not only 100% recyclable, but they are also made out of recycled material such as rPET, a fabric produced from recycled plastic water bottles.

Onya are quite literally taking plastic waste from landfill and turning it into something reusable for many years to come.

The goal at Onya is to offer their customers a well thought out quality alternative to single use plastic and it is by companies like this, partnering with people like you that can actually make the change we want to see happen in our world. 

Why wait for tomorrow when we can take action today? Good Onya!

Source: Onyalife.com

All this cutlery is made from GMO free plant raw materials. In the right conditions, it can be turned into compost. Yay!
Green Home biodegradable packaging and accessories All this cutlery is made from GMO free plant raw materials. In the right conditions, it can be turned into compost. Yay! Source: Facebook/GREENHOMESA

Green Home: South Africa’s only completely compostable food packaging company

Established in 2007, GREEN HOME is South Africa’s first and to this day, only completely compostable food packaging company. Their vision is to provide sustainable packaging for takeaway food throughout Africa, and beyond. They believe that if food packaging is necessary:

  • It should be made from annually renewable resources
  • Should last only as long as it is needed

GREEN HOME encourages the following approach to food packaging choices:

  • Avoid and reduce food packaging as much as possible
  • Find reusable packaging options
  • If it has to be disposable, ensure it’s made from plants

How did it all start? 

Catherine Morris visited a museum on a trip to Thailand in 2006, where she saw a cup made from tapioca starch. Underneath the cup the label said, “an alternative to polystyrene”. 

This got Morris wondering if there were similar products out there and why we weren’t using them in South Africa!

In less than 1 year she made a radical career move and started GREEN HOME.

Carrefour launched reusable bags at its store checkouts in 2004, and these new test projects see Carrefour Belgium going above and beyond current statutory requirements. Carrefour also reviews the packaging of 800 to 1,000 products every year, assessing it particularly with regard to sustainability.
Megastore Carrefour encourages its customers to bring their own bags and boxes Carrefour launched reusable bags at its store checkouts in 2004, and these new test projects see Carrefour Belgium going above and beyond current statutory requirements. Carrefour also reviews the packaging of 800 to 1,000 products every year, assessing it particularly with regard to sustainability. Source: Carrefour.com

Bring your own bags and reusable boxes when you shop in your Carrefour store!

In an initiative to provide sustainable solutions and reduce the use of packaging, Carrefour Belgium is inviting Carrefour Hypermarket and Carrefour Market customers to bring their own bulk bags and reusable boxes to package their purchases from traditional food counters (butchery, fishmonger, delicatessen). 

At the same time, 16 stores will be testing reusable fabric bags for fruit and vegetables. Carrefour Belgium will launch the two initiatives in conjunction with European Week for Waste Reduction. The original pilot project was launched at the Carrefour Hypermarket in Bierges (near Wavre) in early November.

Scarcely two weeks later and following a surge of positive customer reaction – the test project was rolled out to every food counter in the Carrefour Hypermarkets and Carrefour Markets operated by Carrefour Belgium. 

The principle is simple and sustainable: customers bring their bulk bags or reusable boxes with them and use them to pack the products they buy from traditional food counters. The person serving them alters the scales so as to exclude the weight of the container and affixes a price label in the same way as they would to classic plastic packaging. 

It is obviously vital that customers provide only clean, dry boxes suitable for foodstuffs. If food safety cannot be guaranteed, a store employee may refuse to use the container in question. To prevent cross-contamination, different types of meat, cheese and/or processed meat will always be packed in different boxes.

Monday 20 November saw the start of another test at the Carrefour hypermarket in Bierges, this time involving the use of sturdy reusable fabric bags for fruit and vegetables. The bags are washable, sufficiently robust to be reused a number of times and accept price labels easily. They are to be sold at €2.40 for five, i.e. €0.60 per bag. 

A week later, the bags were available in a further 15 test stores. The two initiatives began to coincide with European Week for Waste Reduction. 

As you may remember, Carrefour launched reusable bags at its store checkouts in 2004, and these new test projects see Carrefour Belgium going above and beyond current statutory requirements. Carrefour also reviews the packaging of 800 to 1,000 products every year, assessing it particularly with regard to sustainability. 

These initiatives clearly show that the Belgian retailer intends to play a pioneering role in reducing packaging by providing its customers with sustainable, practical solutions.

Source: Carrefour 

Make an Impact

Petition; 10 UK retailers to switch to biodegradable packaging materials NOW!!!

Sign the petition directed at UK retailers today. Let them know we want them to invest in alternatives to single-use plastic today.