4 ms·

I wish we would go back to having to bring our own containers and fill them up instead of single use plastics. It's so clearly a terrible thing. Whatever we can

by mevile 7y ago

I wish we would go back to having to bring our own containers and fill them up instead of single use plastics. It's so clearly a terrible thing. Whatever we can do to stop single-use containers we should.

jopsen 7y ago
Or you could just buy oatmeal in 25kg bags :) The hygiene and manpower implications of bring-your-container easily makes that complicated. Maybe standardized containers could work. It would certainly be practical if all boxes had the same size :)
- sdenton4 7y ago
  Lots of coop supermarkets here on the west coast allow you to bring your own container to fill from bulk bins... And refillable growlers of kombucha seem to be at least a bit trendy right now.
- pbhjpbhj 7y ago
  Why not bring the 25kg bag back and refill it?
- estebank 7y ago
  I do a significant part of my grocery shopping in a co-op that is set up for you to take in your own package. I take jars and plastic bottles, weight them before using them in the shop, fill them up with sugar, flour, pasta, oil, soap, etc. I haven't noticed it taking any longer than a regular shop run, other than needing the foresight to prepare the bags of jars before hand and the need to go by car which is already kind of a given here.
ssorallen 7y ago
Just Salad in New York City has a reusable bowl program that has made me return a bunch of times to avoid single use plastic. You pay $1 for the bowl, and each time you bring it back you get free toppings. https://www.plasticstoday.com/packaging/just-salad-s-reusable-bowl-program-reportedly-eliminates-more-75000-pounds-plastic-waste-every-year/81568703058805 https://www.plasticstoday.com/packaging/just-salad-s-reusabl... The hygiene part is rather interesting. The people working with the food are not allowed to touch your bowl with their gloved hands, and your bowl can’t touch anything behind the counter. They set a plate on the counter that you set your bowl on, and then they grab the plate and steady your bowl with tongs that they clean after each salad they make anyway. Going back to reusable in restaurant settings would require thinking about the hygiene of those reusables.
- kd5bjo 7y ago
  Lots of restaurants never stopped using reusable utensils, they just don’t let you take their bowl home with you because it’s expensive. It would not be hard for a restaurant to take a deposit and let you walk away with their bowl, and let you get it back when you returned it to be cleaned. Several restaurants could even agree to take back each other’s dishes in exchange for their own, and then return it for you.
  - willemh 7y ago
    I agree with you and I've seen it happening already at the Christmas markets in Hamburg, Germany. I bought a hot drink that came in a ceramic mug (which required a deposit) that I then returned after walking around the rest of the market. I'm sure some people kept them as souvenirs but it seemed like the vast majority were returned.
- cafebabbe 7y ago
  The hygiene is a non-problem. I used to worked in (decent quality) kitchens - you would never believe what I've witnessed. And still, sanitary problems occur incredibly rarely.
sfifs 7y ago
That wouldn't really work in a litigious society like the US. If someone got sick or died due to food poisoning was it because of the product or because of the unclean container? Even if it was due to the container, there's no way to prove it and in the era of social media, the manufacturer's reputation would take a major hit and no major brand will risk that. So the only viable option becomes reusable containers aka glass containers which lets manufacturers control the cleaning with a supply chain - this is still big for soft drinks sold from restaurants in India. However they're very heavy vs. plastics and both actual cost and the carbon cost of transporting them are probably unfavorable. It's not really an easy problem to solve though reduction in consumption of packing plastics is definitely possible
- ssorallen 7y ago
  Just Salad in NYC has a successful reusable plastic bowl program. (I commented right before you about it.)
- bonniemuffin 7y ago
  All kinds of foods at Rainbow Grocery in San Francisco are sold on a bring-your-own-container basis. I bring my own containers to buy spices, oils, flour, peanut butter, pickles, deli food, and more. So it's certainly possible-- they've been doing it for 40+ years and no one has sued them out of existence yet. https://www.rainbow.coop/ https://www.rainbow.coop/
  - icelancer 7y ago
    No one is going to sue Rainbow Grocery. They might sue Target or Kroger.
    - sfifs 7y ago
      Basically this. Or PepsiCo or Coke or Unilever or Nestle.
Spooky23 7y ago
The problem there is some concerned citizen will come up with a calculation that shipping and washing a glass or heavier plastic bottle will burn more energy, etc.

by mevile 7y ago

jopsen 7y ago

Or you could just buy oatmeal in 25kg bags :) The hygiene and manpower implications of bring-your-container easily makes that complicated. Maybe standardized containers could work. It would certainly be practical if all boxes had the same size :)

sdenton4 7y ago
Lots of coop supermarkets here on the west coast allow you to bring your own container to fill from bulk bins... And refillable growlers of kombucha seem to be at least a bit trendy right now.
pbhjpbhj 7y ago
Why not bring the 25kg bag back and refill it?
estebank 7y ago
I do a significant part of my grocery shopping in a co-op that is set up for you to take in your own package. I take jars and plastic bottles, weight them before using them in the shop, fill them up with sugar, flour, pasta, oil, soap, etc. I haven't noticed it taking any longer than a regular shop run, other than needing the foresight to prepare the bags of jars before hand and the need to go by car which is already kind of a given here.

ssorallen 7y ago

Just Salad in New York City has a reusable bowl program that has made me return a bunch of times to avoid single use plastic. You pay $1 for the bowl, and each time you bring it back you get free toppings. https://www.plasticstoday.com/packaging/just-salad-s-reusable-bowl-program-reportedly-eliminates-more-75000-pounds-plastic-waste-every-year/81568703058805 https://www.plasticstoday.com/packaging/just-salad-s-reusabl... The hygiene part is rather interesting. The people working with the food are not allowed to touch your bowl with their gloved hands, and your bowl can’t touch anything behind the counter. They set a plate on the counter that you set your bowl on, and then they grab the plate and steady your bowl with tongs that they clean after each salad they make anyway. Going back to reusable in restaurant settings would require thinking about the hygiene of those reusables.

kd5bjo 7y ago
Lots of restaurants never stopped using reusable utensils, they just don’t let you take their bowl home with you because it’s expensive. It would not be hard for a restaurant to take a deposit and let you walk away with their bowl, and let you get it back when you returned it to be cleaned. Several restaurants could even agree to take back each other’s dishes in exchange for their own, and then return it for you.
- willemh 7y ago
  I agree with you and I've seen it happening already at the Christmas markets in Hamburg, Germany. I bought a hot drink that came in a ceramic mug (which required a deposit) that I then returned after walking around the rest of the market. I'm sure some people kept them as souvenirs but it seemed like the vast majority were returned.
cafebabbe 7y ago
The hygiene is a non-problem. I used to worked in (decent quality) kitchens - you would never believe what I've witnessed. And still, sanitary problems occur incredibly rarely.

sfifs 7y ago

That wouldn't really work in a litigious society like the US. If someone got sick or died due to food poisoning was it because of the product or because of the unclean container? Even if it was due to the container, there's no way to prove it and in the era of social media, the manufacturer's reputation would take a major hit and no major brand will risk that. So the only viable option becomes reusable containers aka glass containers which lets manufacturers control the cleaning with a supply chain - this is still big for soft drinks sold from restaurants in India. However they're very heavy vs. plastics and both actual cost and the carbon cost of transporting them are probably unfavorable. It's not really an easy problem to solve though reduction in consumption of packing plastics is definitely possible

ssorallen 7y ago
Just Salad in NYC has a successful reusable plastic bowl program. (I commented right before you about it.)
bonniemuffin 7y ago
All kinds of foods at Rainbow Grocery in San Francisco are sold on a bring-your-own-container basis. I bring my own containers to buy spices, oils, flour, peanut butter, pickles, deli food, and more. So it's certainly possible-- they've been doing it for 40+ years and no one has sued them out of existence yet. https://www.rainbow.coop/ https://www.rainbow.coop/
- icelancer 7y ago
  No one is going to sue Rainbow Grocery. They might sue Target or Kroger.
  - sfifs 7y ago
    Basically this. Or PepsiCo or Coke or Unilever or Nestle.

Spooky23 7y ago

The problem there is some concerned citizen will come up with a calculation that shipping and washing a glass or heavier plastic bottle will burn more energy, etc.