Paper lacks many properties sought after in plastic packaging. We end up coating the paper if we try to make it exhibit those properties, and the coatings frequ

Paper lacks many properties sought after in plastic packaging. We end up coating the paper if we try to make it exhibit those properties, and the coatings frequently involve some kind of polymer. If it wasn't for the microplastics problem that I don't see a solution for yet (need something on the order of Drexlerian nanotech to scour the environment and pull the microplastics out of it), then more durable, reusable designs of plastic packaging would be amazing. Glass and stainless steel containers are my go-to solutions at home, but many people are unwilling to put up with their bulk and weight. My ideal is hermetically sealed glass containers [1] that use ground glass joints to seal, but there is a limited selection of their form factors (I can't find tall sizes for holding spaghetti, for example). I haven't been able to find stainless steel containers with reusable recycled rubber or cork gaskets in a good selection of form factors. I've wondered what it would take to coordinate with a manufacturer or distributor to link up a crowdsource-driven supply chain to optimize for reduce and reuse. Crowdsource enough local people within biking/PRT/drone distance who will commit to buying some specific quantity periodically over a few years, and source wholesale quantities of goods to eliminate retail packaging. Send a truck on an optimized route picking up pallet loads of goods from different manufacturers/distributors. Use material handling robots to break down the full truck load of goods, pick and place into bins, and queue for last mile distribution of first month delivery. Remainder sits in a super-insulated (R-100 or so) warehouse. The question is about finding that breakeven point where the automation productivity can be captured by a small enough group of people that makes it worthwhile for them to implement instead of letting an Amazon/WalMart/Target capture the lion's share productivity gains' benefits. [1] https://www.thomassci.com/scientific-supplies/Ground-Glass-Bottles https://www.thomassci.com/scientific-supplies/Ground-Glass-B...