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I wonder how much pollution will this new process of recycling plastic bring. There is so much unnecessary plastic going around in our society, let's start the

by vfc1 7y ago

I wonder how much pollution will this new process of recycling plastic bring. There is so much unnecessary plastic going around in our society, let's start there first. On my local supermarket, to buy 4 peaches they come in a plastic container fully covered with plastic sheet, I'm not kidding.

elhudy 7y ago
Something that really stuck out to me in Japan was seeing the bananas at the supermarket wrapped in plastic. If only bananas had some NATURAL WAY of protecting themselves from the elements...
- 11235813213455 7y ago
  they even remove the skin?
  - elhudy 7y ago
    no, they wrapped the skin in plastic
- hevi_jos 7y ago
  It is more complex than that. Japan is not a producer of fruits. They come from far away. This means they have to transport it economically, that means they are transported by sea. That means bananas are green when collected and sent to Japan, because transporting it by sea takes a long time. Bananas naturally release CH4 that actually makes the fruit mature and spoils it. So they have to absorb it or diffuse during transport, then add it in Japan. But if they add it in Japan, the fruit does not mature entirely, only the external side, so it is a good idea to add an artificial atmosphere of some kind.
  - elhudy 7y ago
    Thank you for this info - very interesting.
  - twic 7y ago
    Nitpick: it's C2H4, ethene. CH4 is methane. You can power rockets with that, but not ripen bananas.
  - m0xte 7y ago
    In the UK they come in large boxes by ship unwrapped. They are green when they arrive. I’m sure japan can manage that. I suspect it’s a social thing rather than a necessity.
11235813213455 7y ago
Exactly, people can start simple like reusing their plastic bags for fruits, that's what I'm telling people at the supermarket. Most of the time, I just take some cardboard boxes or sheets in the supermarket and fill it with fruits, then later throw them in the recycle bin, or nothing at all for legumes At least, people bring their own shopping bags, because plastic ones at the checkout are not free, a good thing. There many other more or less useless products, like soap/shampoo plastic bottles, a soap bar does the job so well, for everything Recycling comes with a cost: energy, pollution, transports
Kiro 7y ago
No idea about those peaches specifically but wrapping vegetables in plastic generally reduces the environmental impact since it prevents them from spoiling.
- Vomzor 7y ago
  Exactly. > But research shows that a wrapped cucumber lasts more than three times as long as an unwrapped one. It will also lose just 1.5 per cent of its weight through evaporation after 14 days, compared with 3.5 per cent in just three days for an exposed cucumber. A longer life, Aldridge writes, means less frequent deliveries, with all their consequent energy costs, and, crucially, less waste. Globally, we throw out as much as 50 per cent of food, often when it perishes. It typically goes to landfill and gives off methane, a greenhouse gas. https://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/food-and-drink/features/a-lesson-in-packaging-myths-is-shrink-wrap-on-a-cucumber-really-mindless-waste-8340812.html https://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/food-and-drink/feat...
- khendron 7y ago
  It may reduce the environmental impact by preventing spoiling, but at the same time it increases the environmental impact because now the vegetable can (and are) shipped across vast distances. Maybe we should be rethinking our entire food infrastructure and concentrate on delivering food to local markets, not markets 1000s of miles away.
  - lotsofpulp 7y ago
    Good luck telling people they can’t eat avocados because they don’t live close to where they grow.
    - martin_a 7y ago
      How did people live without Avocados before they became a thing about like five years ago?
      - phonethrowaway 7y ago
rascul 7y ago
I work at a big box home improvement store (Lowe's). We throw away more plastic in a day at work then I go through at home in probably a year. Fridges are some of the worst offenders (except GE which uses mostly cardboard). As much as I try and reduce my plastic consumption and pick up the trash people throw out on my street, it doesn't matter one bit. I find that it's much more important to get these companies to change than any number of individuals.

by vfc1 7y ago

elhudy 7y ago

Something that really stuck out to me in Japan was seeing the bananas at the supermarket wrapped in plastic. If only bananas had some NATURAL WAY of protecting themselves from the elements...

11235813213455 7y ago
they even remove the skin?
- elhudy 7y ago
  no, they wrapped the skin in plastic
hevi_jos 7y ago
It is more complex than that. Japan is not a producer of fruits. They come from far away. This means they have to transport it economically, that means they are transported by sea. That means bananas are green when collected and sent to Japan, because transporting it by sea takes a long time. Bananas naturally release CH4 that actually makes the fruit mature and spoils it. So they have to absorb it or diffuse during transport, then add it in Japan. But if they add it in Japan, the fruit does not mature entirely, only the external side, so it is a good idea to add an artificial atmosphere of some kind.
- elhudy 7y ago
  Thank you for this info - very interesting.
- twic 7y ago
  Nitpick: it's C2H4, ethene. CH4 is methane. You can power rockets with that, but not ripen bananas.
- m0xte 7y ago
  In the UK they come in large boxes by ship unwrapped. They are green when they arrive. I’m sure japan can manage that. I suspect it’s a social thing rather than a necessity.

11235813213455 7y ago

Exactly, people can start simple like reusing their plastic bags for fruits, that's what I'm telling people at the supermarket. Most of the time, I just take some cardboard boxes or sheets in the supermarket and fill it with fruits, then later throw them in the recycle bin, or nothing at all for legumes At least, people bring their own shopping bags, because plastic ones at the checkout are not free, a good thing. There many other more or less useless products, like soap/shampoo plastic bottles, a soap bar does the job so well, for everything Recycling comes with a cost: energy, pollution, transports

Kiro 7y ago

No idea about those peaches specifically but wrapping vegetables in plastic generally reduces the environmental impact since it prevents them from spoiling.

Vomzor 7y ago
Exactly. > But research shows that a wrapped cucumber lasts more than three times as long as an unwrapped one. It will also lose just 1.5 per cent of its weight through evaporation after 14 days, compared with 3.5 per cent in just three days for an exposed cucumber. A longer life, Aldridge writes, means less frequent deliveries, with all their consequent energy costs, and, crucially, less waste. Globally, we throw out as much as 50 per cent of food, often when it perishes. It typically goes to landfill and gives off methane, a greenhouse gas. https://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/food-and-drink/features/a-lesson-in-packaging-myths-is-shrink-wrap-on-a-cucumber-really-mindless-waste-8340812.html https://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/food-and-drink/feat...
khendron 7y ago
It may reduce the environmental impact by preventing spoiling, but at the same time it increases the environmental impact because now the vegetable can (and are) shipped across vast distances. Maybe we should be rethinking our entire food infrastructure and concentrate on delivering food to local markets, not markets 1000s of miles away.
- lotsofpulp 7y ago
  Good luck telling people they can’t eat avocados because they don’t live close to where they grow.
  - martin_a 7y ago
    How did people live without Avocados before they became a thing about like five years ago?
    - phonethrowaway 7y ago

rascul 7y ago

I work at a big box home improvement store (Lowe's). We throw away more plastic in a day at work then I go through at home in probably a year. Fridges are some of the worst offenders (except GE which uses mostly cardboard). As much as I try and reduce my plastic consumption and pick up the trash people throw out on my street, it doesn't matter one bit. I find that it's much more important to get these companies to change than any number of individuals.