Rethinking The Plastic In Our Lives

Some of the most promising shifts to promote a cleaner future have concerned the reduction of disposable plastics. We’ve seen a mineral water giant promise to switch to 100 percent recycled plastic by 2025. Airlines rid toss-able extras like straws, wrappers, and single-use utensils from their cabins. Beauty brands embrace the loop system and offer recyclable and compostable product refills. The changes have been huge and small, straightforward and inventive.

As encouraging as they are, these strides also beg the question: Why is there still so much single-use, toxic, ocean-choking plastic? It’s disarming—an insult, really—to order a product, only to find it wrapped in copious layers or contained in a throwaway plastic bottle.

This egregious waste inspired Tonia Soteros to open Recontained, a zero waste online and brick-and-mortar shop that offers bulk items and other alternatives to single-use plastic. Soteros was flipping through a book in the checkout line one day when she halted at this statistic: If every person in America stopped using body wash, it would save 2.5 million pounds of plastic entering the landfill every year. “I immediately became a bar soap girl,” she says. But what about all the other shampoos, cleaners, conditioners, and the like in her house? Soteros looked to see if there was a place that offered these solutions in bulk, allowing her to refill her empty containers rather than toss them. Unable to find one, she opened Recontained.

Soteros’s journey is a reminder of how huge the issue of disposable plastics is, which is why it needs to be tackled from every angle. The companies making the single-used plastics need to be held accountable, just as the businesses employing them do. The onus is also on us: We need to be vigilant in rethinking how we let single-use plastic into our lives. As Soteros helps us see, this can start with simple manageable steps.   

5 Ways to Reduce Disposable Plastic

Rethink the Bottle

For those looking for an easy way to begin their zero-waste journey, Soteros suggests eliminating the plastic water bottles—for good. “This is a simple, straightforward swap that can have a substantial impact,” she says. Invest in a reusable bottle and a water filter. And if you have a water delivery, she suggests finding one that delivers in glass instead of plastic.

 Bag Smartly

Even though some cities across the US have banned single-use plastic bags, these sneaky polluters are still out there in droves. Rid this practice and keep a few sustainable, reusable bags accessible. Soteros like the organic mesh bags. They work for most anything, including produce, and take up little room when not in use.

 Be Picky with Packaging

The grocery store is a huge culprit of excessive plastic, says Soteros, who points to the plastic mesh bags often used to contain fruits and vegetables. “Not only do these bags contribute to the plastic that ends up in the landfills, but they so often end up in the ocean where they cause severe damage and death to our precious marine life,” she says. Aim to buy produce that is unpackaged, or at least free of plastic. (This is an easy option at the farmers market.)

 Sweat the Small Stuff

We tend to be more aware of the throwaway water bottles, the single-use shopping bags, the old BPA-leaching food containers, but the tinier plastic culprits often lack our attention. “Once you start really paying attention, you will begin to see excessive plastic all around you,” says Soteros. Take note of the smaller plastic parts—i.e. bottle cap safety seals, personal care bottle caps, food takeout containers, lip balm tubes—and see if you can recycle them or find an alternative company that does without them in their packaging. TerraCycle offers a ZeroWaste box that makes recycling odd and overlooked items a breeze. 

 Communicate

A simple email or call can go a very long way. By reaching out to a company to voice your concern over their packaging, shipping practices, and other methods that incorporate disposable plastic, it can spark a helpful conversation. Oftentimes a company may be working toward reducing their plastic use but they haven’t communicated this to their customers. Or perhaps your call may entice them to shift their priorities. Honest communication can spark great change. 

To learn more about Soteros and Recontained, visit: recontained.com. And for more information on how to combat the issue of plastic waste, these organizations are creating incredible movements:

Alliance to End Plastic Waste

 Green Education Foundation

 Plastic Pollution Coalition

 The Story of Stuff Project

How to Keep Produce Fresh

I have been on a long mission to reduce food waste in our household. This is to save time and money, and to avoid adding to the gigantic problem that is wasted food in America. 

Research shows that fresh produce is among the top foods that are tossed. It makes sense, as keeping fruits and vegetables fresh can be a surprisingly tough mandate. How many times has a head of crisp lettuce quickly turned into a wilted pile in the fridge? In efforts to reduce this, I’ve created a system that makes it easier to keep fruits and vegetables fresher, longer. 

Refrigerator Storage 

Before jumping in, a quick word on storage: If you do have produce that is wilted and old, discard it before your farmers’ market or grocery run. This will keep bacteria and other compounds from spoiling your fresh produce faster. (You can read more on that in my guide to keeping a clean fridge.) A great way to save wilted produce is to place it in a pot of water with bones to make bone broth. (You can also store it in the freezer in a broth bag for when you’re ready to make broth.) Give the fruit and vegetable shelves and bins a quick wipe-down with vinegar and water. (I keep a small spray bottle of this solution under the sink.) This is all you need in between deeper refrigerator cleanings. 

Lettuce: Wash lettuce as soon as you get home from the farmer’s market. Unroll several feet of paper towel and place it on the counter. Cut off the base of the lettuce head. Put lettuce leaves in a salad spinner and fill with water so they are completely immersed, taking caution not to overcrowd. Use your hands to vigorously agitate the lettuce. If the water turns brown and gritty, dump it out and repeat the process until the water is clean. Once the lettuce is clean, dump out the water and energetically spin it dry. Place the lettuce on the paper towels in a single layer to air dry. Once dry, roll the lettuce in the paper towels and place the wrapped lettuce in a sealed reusable bag (pushing ALL of the air out before sealing) and store in the fridge. This will double—or even triple—the shelf life of your lettuce. It will also be ready to eat, making salad preparation that much easier. This applies to all lettuces except tender greens like arugula and baby spinach, which have a shorter shelf life and should be eaten within a few days of buying them. 

Carrots: If you put carrots directly in your crisper, they’ll be limp by the end of the week. Instead, cut off carrot tops and discard or save for reuse. (I love to put them in a food processor and add to pesto, chimichurri, tabouli salad, or broths.) Submerge carrots in water in a large, flat, high-sided glass container and store in the fridge. If they are too long, you can cut or break them in half. This will generally keep carrots fresh for longer than a month. Change the water every so often to keep it fresh and clear. This method also works well for parsnips and radishes.

Broccoli: Airflow is important to keep broccoli fresh. Before storing in the fridge, you can slice off the end and store stem down in a jar of water, like a broccoli bouquet, or wrap the stem in a damp paper towel. Don’t wash broccoli until you are ready to eat it.

Asparagus, Celery, and Other Cruciferous Vegetables: These can be stored like broccoli in water. Cut an inch off the bottom first. Celery also lasts if stored in a sealed bag. Cauliflower can be stored in a ventilated bag in the fridge, or loose if you don’t have one. Brussels sprouts and cabbage keep in sealed bags in the fridge, ideally in the crisper. 

Squash: Store zucchini and summer squash loose in the crisper. Large winter squash, like pumpkin and butternut squash, are best stored on a countertop or in a pantry.

Potatoes and Onions: These should be stored outside of the fridge in a cool, dry, dark place. 

Mushrooms: Store in a paper bag in the fridge door. Keep the natural dirt on the surface until right before you cook or eat them.

Herbs: Different herbs require different storage techniques. Leafy herbs like basil should be stored upright in a glass of water, like a bouquet of flowers, at room temperature. Tender herbs like parsley and cilantro can also be stored this way. Be sure to change the water every couple of days. Hardier herbs like rosemary and thyme can be wrapped in a damp paper towel and stored in a bag in the fridge. (For long-term storage, put the bag in the freezer.) You can also make herb-olive oil ice cubes: Portion out washed, de-stemmed and chopped herbs into ice-cube trays, fill the trays with olive oil and freeze. 

Berries: Store unwashed berries in the fridge in a paper towel-lined glass container with a lid. Berries last longer, especially soft ones like raspberries, if they are stored in a single layer so a large/wide, low-sided container is best.

Tomatoes: Store this fruit separately at room temperature. Refrigeration will make tomatoes mealy.

Other Fruits: Ethylene-producing fruits, like apples, avocados, and bananas, should be stored separately from other produce. They cause other produce to ripen and decay faster and will cause potatoes to sprout. 

Once you get into a rhythm of honoring what a specific fruit or vegetable needs, keeping them fresh becomes an easy habit. To ensure you eat through all of your food, keep the newest on the bottom or in the back so the oldest is most accessible. And always aim to keep anything in glass over plastic containers. There inevitably may be some foods that end up needing to be tossed,  but taking this in stride, and making even small reductions in waste, can lead to a huge difference. 

Containers

Avoid plastic and invest in glass whenever possible. Plastic is toxic and leaches into food, and it pollutes our earth and ocean. The National Ocean Service estimates that eight million tons of plastic enter the ocean every year. The glass container will last longer than the lid, so I recommend buying from a brand that sells replacement lids, like Pyrex, Anchorage, or Snapware. Lids will last longer if you wash by hand, or don’t use the dry cycle on the dishwasher. 

It’s recommended to keep eggs at the top where the temperature is most consistent and milk on the bottom in the back of the fridge where it is coldest. If something starts to go bad, remove it immediately so it doesn’t contaminate the rest of your food.