I need some ideas on what I can use to put sandwiches, snacks, etc. in when packing my daughter's lunch. I have been trying to make changes in our lives to support the "green movement". Reusing, walking more, using fabric bags for groceries, etc. and it seems to me that there must be a better way to pack her lunch than using 3-4 plastic sandwich bags every day that just get thrown out. I have tried reusing them by washing them out but sometimes they are such a mess it seems kind of unsanitary to use them again, even after washing. Is there something else we could use that would be better for the environment and still practical to keep food safe?
All I can say is thank you so much for all the brilliant ideas. I can't believe I didn't think of these. The web sites you provided were terrific! Great resources and it is nice to know so many of you are working on thinking green too. We often think we are isolated in our own daily lives and yet look at what we can do together when we are all working toward the same goal. I love all you "mamasource" moms.
Good Morning P.,
You can try wrapping the sandwiches in the brown/white paper for freezing, if there is a recycle bin at the school she could throw the trash in that.
Also depending on age you can get the lunch boxes that have the compartments with bowls and pack everything in those and she could just bring them home.
Good luck
Hi P., This is H.. Certain stores, and many online vendors, sell wax paper bags that fit sandwiches perfectly, are made of recycled material and will biodegrade someday. Also, there are tupperwear containers that are the perfect size for sandwiches too, and with those there's never a possibility of a squished sandwich.
I use a hard plastic 'sandwich' case (like tupperware) and then I use the gladware small containers to put fruit, cut up cheese, crackers, dried fruit, etc. I also use a bike water bottle for drinks. Good luck.
Do a web search for happy sacks. They are washable & reusable. She frequently has new patterns available too. My other school favorite is the Sigg water bottles. Both my kids have them and they are great. Keeps you liquids cold for a long time. I'm trying to support the green movement too and have switched all my cleaning products over and next I'm going to try to get rid of my grocery bags and bring my own in. I figure whatever we can do can only help our children in the future..Hope that helps
We use these laptop lunch boxes. They are absolutely fantastic. Check it out... you'll be glad you did. They're great for the environment, safe, and convenient. The only problem we had was it took our 5 year old a few practices to open it. We just made sure he had it down before we sent it with him for the first time. He did fine. Good luck with your search and thanks for making the decision to expand your "green" efforts. You are truly being a great role model for your child and maybe all of our children can benefit from these efforts one day.
Take care,
J.
Hi P. -
There are also waxed paper bags by Natural Value. They are unbleached, non-toxic and landfill safe. They are about the size of a plastic sandwich bag and have worked great for us for snacks and sanwiches. If I have things like crackers in them, sometimes I even reuse them again...just a thought!
Some ideas :o)
http://www.reusablebags.com/store/lunch-bags-c-4.html?osC...
Tupper-ware reusable containers. They also have them in the shape of bread for sandwiches.
My daughter has a tupperware sandwich box with Barbie on it that we use, so maybe you could find one for sandwiches. Other than that, I'm not sure! Maybe smaller tupperware for her other snacks?!!
there are all sorts of reuseable containers in small sizes....they even have fun kids ones for sandwiches....walmart and meijers carry alot of them and they don't cost much
Hi P.! I am glad you are thinking of the environment and making our world a better place. Like you, I try hard to make changes that is better for our world. I have been using plastic containers made especially for sandwiches and also plastic containers for any side items I pack. That way, they are brought home everyday and I wash and reuse them.
I am sure there are many more ideas out there that I haven't learned yet. I will be excited to hear about them as responses come in.
Thanks for all that you are doing to help!
We use tupperware and the Gerber graduates bowls with lids for everything! hope that helps!
You have some great advice already. I would just add that you can reuse a lot of plastic containers, when we get chinese, i wash the soup container, it is very sturdy and washes great, reuse butter tubs, cool whip tubs, sour cream, cottage cheese, chip dip containers. These are all great ways to save money on containers, you can put anything in them and you won't care if they get ruined or lost, because they were essentially free. The sandwich box is something that I might invest in though, since it is just a perfect size and fit, unlike putting a square sandwich in a round tub, but if you cut cookie cutter shapes out of the sandwich, they will still stack great in a round tub.
Rubbermaid and the like have containers that pretty much look designed for a sandwich. You use, you wash, you reuse. It's plastic, yes, but it's better than use/toss bags.
There is a product called laptop lunchbox. It is safe plastic containers that are BPA free and you can use again and again. They come in cute colors. I found them at whole foods, online and they were written about in last months Parents (or Parenting, I forget) magazine.
There are tupperware like little sandwich boxes that my son likes alot. It keeps his sandwich from getting smooshed. A lot of them are top-shelf dishwasher safe SO... they get sanatized.
Hope that can help!
Hi, I use the Laptop Lunch System.
It works great for my child because once you open it, the food
is already to eat. No opening baggies or containters.
You can google Laptop Lunch system and also some other great containers are Lock to Lock and they are very reasonably priced.
If you have time there is a mom that has a website called Lap Top Lunches and she has taken pictures of 99 different luches she has made. It's crazy, but you can some good lunch ideas. She uses this lunch box system too.
M.
I use plastic sandwich containers. They wash up nice and last while. they are also recylceable.
Buy the tupperware or rubbermaid containers for sandwiches. There are also smaller containers for snacks and such.
It is great that you are conscientious of the plastic and recyclying. We do that too! I even take it a step furter with concentrated non toxic and biodegradable cleaning and laundry products. Really helps us in many ways, including: easier on our septic field, we save money and the products come in recyclable containers. Very cool (or is the new word sweet? haha).
Hope this helps.
M.
I agree with the other mom's I bought the tupperware sandwich containers and I love them.Got a set of 2.But you can find them in any store for a little cheaper.Tupperware will replace if they get crack.Just have to remind the kids do not THROW them away.I still use sandwich bags if we go on trips but I try not too that often.I too switched to the cloth bags.
for sandwiches I use the plastic sandwich containers everyone else mentioned. For snacks and stuff I made reusable bags. I used PUL fbric (PUL - Polyurethane Laminate – PUL is fabric with a waterproof laminate applied to the back. This makes for an extremely thin, soft fabric that is waterproof and easy to care for - I could only find on ebay) Then I just made them in varing sizes with velcro sewed on to keep them closed.
They are great because I can either just wipe them clean or throw them in the wash.
Good for you! I agree with your efforts. My kids have been using a hard, plastic sandwich containers that I purchased from Tupperware. You can also reuse the small Pringle containers for snacks.
Yo
www.travelwithyo.info
Hello,
I use the Laptop Lunchbox. Check out their website www.laptoplunches.com or you can buy them at Whole Foods. Basically they have individual plastic containers that are reuseable (machine washable)and they all fit in one big container like a puzzle. They also provide recipes and other "green" friendly suggestions. Good luck.
G.
Have you thought of buying a hard plastice sandwich container that can be eaily used every day and be washed nightly? We have those as they have come in previous lunch boxes and the kids like them because the sandwiches don't get "smashed".
Good Luck!
K.
Did you know Pringles UK produced their own plastic holders so that the Pringles didn’t get crushed when you put a few in your lunch box? Each container holds approx 12 Pringles and is reusable.
I have loads of Pringle Holders, Red, Green, Black, Scooby Doo, Christmas ones, silver and purple sparkly ones, heat colour changing ones. There are only 2 main collectors of Pringle holders in the UK. I'm one of them!
If anybody wants to buy one or more, let me know. I can post anywhere in the world. All of them are boxed (except for the Scooby ones, which were produced loose). I have Scooby ones that are still shrink wrapped with the bar code on! The Scooby collection consists of: Scooby, Shaggy, Fred, Velma, Daphne, Mystery Machine. Happy to sell the individually or as a set.
Please let me know if you need any photo's or more info!!
look forward to hearing from you ...
P. K. (have a look at my Facebook page) :)
Tupperware has great (but expensive) sandwich keepers, Walmart sells sandwich keepers from Wonder, and Crayola. I have used them for a few years, and they were only $1.50 each.. the only problem is that they are not dishwasher safe. In the baby section there are little bowls that are like $3.00 for 10 bowls and lids, they are cheap enough to lose, but sturdy enough to use over and over. I like the size, they are small enough to fit into lunch boxes. Hope this helps-good luck!
I use a wonder bread tupperware like container I got at the grocery store for sandwiches. They have all different size containers at Target that would work.
i use the tupperware sandwich keepers i have 2 children so i have 4 keepers,that way they carry 1 and i can wash the other.iam sure there are other kinds,maybe rubbermaid.i would be careful with the cheaper dollars store ones they're hinges dont seem to last as long.
Hello P.,
I know at one they made wax paper bags for sandwiches. I use a sandwich container from Walmart.
L.
I used reusable plastic storage containers by Heritage. You can buy them at Meijer. they are square for sandwiches and smaller rectangles for snacks. They have easy to use flaps that work great for small hands. I started using them last year when my son was two (October B-Day) when he started going to preschool.
I couldn't find a website for the product, but I did find pictures on Amazon.com. Good luck
http://www.amazon.com/Airtight-Food-Storage-Container-Set...
I use a plastic container that's specifically shaped to fit a sandwhich. Then for the snack items, I have various sizes and shapes of re-useable plastic containers.
I use Tupperware for our lunches. They have many different size containers. They are pricy though so maybe even seek out a cheaper brand at Target or something.
I use the reusable Glad plastic containers for my sons lunch.
They are cheaper than Tupperware, you can get them at Wal-Mart or the grocery store and you can get a variety of sizes.
If one doesn't come home for some reason you aren't out much money. Tupperware is nicer as it is a better quality and good for packing soups and other liquids. Nice to know others are thinking "green" too.
S.
Just a cool website to pass along.
www.greenmomfinds.com
They often review products that are really cool as well as green.
S.
I actually use little plastic containers with lids for my daughter's lunches. They have the one shaped like a sandwich and then small ones for her snacks. It's a lot nicer, too because nothing gets smashed. I found them at Meijer and they also sell them at Target, Walmart, etc. Good luck!! :)
Grocery stores sell tupperware containers for sandwiches. My son is 6 and he has a 'Crayola' sandwich container that we re-use every day.
Tupperware makes a plastic compartmentalized container for kids lunches. We love it and there is no waste.
S.
This one is easy :-) Rubbermaid or Tupperware containers are a great alternative to plastic bags. You can get small containers in many shapes - they even have collapsible containers that take up less room when they are empty. Write your daughter's name on every container (top and bottom) so they can be returned to her in case they get misplaced at school. She can bring them home at the end of they day, they can be washed, and used again right away to pack the next lunch/snack. The best past is they can be used for years. I'm a teacher and this is how a majority of my students bring their lunch. It's what I do too. Happy packing.
I didn't see if you got this response but the make cloth sandwich holders specifically for that reason. They are cotton exterior and a waterproof or easy wash interior... not sure what material that is...
good luck
I grew up taking my lunch in wax paper bags. You can also use plastic containers if your kids will bring them back home and not toss them. Perhaps a lunch box would be best for those. Good for you for trying to go more green! It's a challenge, isn't it?
What she said. I was going to say the same thing untill I read the other response. :)
if you go to meijer, i can't remember exactly where i believe in dishware but they have these plastic containers shaped like sandwiches. They are crayola, they're great cause they don't squish the sandwich.
Hi P.,
Congratulations on trying to get away from plastics and thinking green. When I was young, all we used was waxed paper! We even made little pouches, if needed, by turning over the edges and stapling- works for raisins, nuts, etc.
My neighbor always tailgates at U of M games and used lots of plastic utensils. I said "Gee, we use these plastic forks for 10 minutes and then throw them in the landfill where they will sit for 2,000 years". That comment hit her like a ton of bricks. She went to a lot of garage sales and bought up all odds and ends of silverware, and has people throw them in a bucket when they are done eating. It is very easy to make a few changes and be kinder to the Earth.
I have switched to all green products in my home, too, and this is much safer for my family and for the Earth. Please check out my Mamasource business 'M. Goes Green'.
Thanks for being a good caretaker to you children and our planet.
M.
I have seen plastic containers specifically sized for sandwiches, these can be washed in the dishwasher. Also, there are Gladware and similar containers (you can get these at grocery store - they're not as sturdy as Rubbermaid containers, but they can be washed and reused until they start to crack and break) that can be reused for a while, in small sizes that might work out perfectly for lunch.
When I was a kid there weren't any plastic bags. My sandwiches were wrapped in wax paper. I would think that would be more environment friendly than plastic. I also use plastic containers of various sizes and makes depending on what I'm packing and in what lunchbox.
Hope this helps!
K.
I put my son's sandwich and fruit in plastic reusable boxes that I wash at the end of each day (the sandwich one I got from walmart and it is designed, shape and size, just for sandwiches). They are good because then the food doesn't get crushed in the lunchbag either. I'm also trying my best to go green but know it can be a challenge at times. Good luck, every little helps.
