Packing School Lunch and Trying to Be More Green

It really doesn't take any more water to wash 50 dishes as opposed to 5 dishes. You are washing dinner dishes anyway, aren't you? It is the same sink full of water or dishwasher load. I also use the bread bags for sandwiches, and then reuse them again for diaper disposal bags at work. A plastic container with pretzels or Goldfish will not need to be washed daily, you can just refill it with more of the same. Not only is washing and reusing containers more environmentally responsible, but it is much more economical that using disposables or single serve.

With the goldfish and pretzels and other dry snacks, could you just use a towel to wipe it out or just bang out the crumbs? That's generally what we do. Then just give 'em a quick rinse every few days.

I hear what you are saying, and I've wondered some of the same things. My opinion is though I doubt you are really using that much more water. Presumably you are putting them in the dishwasher and although you might be filling your dishwasher up more quickly because of these things I doubt it is significantly impacting how many times you are running it.

Another thought might be to buy some of those reusable fabric bags. I use those frequently and rarely wash them. I will rinse them out quickly (which uses little water) or run them through the washing machine with my other things and they don't take up any extra room or create a load of their own.

What you are saving by doing all of this is not only landfill trash of all that excess packaging, but also the processing resources used to make all those things. I think that is important.

I think washing them over and over, is better then creating a need to produce more plastic baggies over and over. The toxins, water, and gasoline it takes to produce the baggies, if far greater the you washing bowls at home. Not to mention the space in landfills and dumps.

I think it's about balance. My husband drives a guzzler truck, but it's totally paid off and in great condition. We do not want to buy a new vehicle. So, he only uses the truck for work, and we use my economical car for everything else. So, you use lots of gas. There are plenty of ways to reduce your footprint elsewhere. Like, using reusable containers, shopping bags, or taking shorter showers.

Dishwasher resolves the issue. For dry items, a quick wipe with a dry towel should do the trick.

factors I use are -

want or need. this isn't only about saving money, but its also an environmental decision. I don't need a new toaster if mine works fine.

local resources. Chicago is pretty neutral on this one, but suppose you lived in an area which is land rich, but water poor. maybe cloth diapering and all the washing would be the wrong decision.

packaging. no need to buy something which has unnecessary packaging.

composition. no need to buy something which is full of junky materials, chemicals, or cheaply made.

maintenance. how much time, money, energy, resources is this thing going to take to clean, store, use, maintain.

disposal. is it reusable, recycleable.

attendant environmental costs-
do transportation costs, manufacturing processes, etc leave a lot to be desired?

these are factors, I'm sure others will offer their own. You could get compulsive and try to buy the very best/ greenest on the market, or you can simply try to make ongoing improvements within your own tolerance to become a better steward of the earth. I am practicing the later.

Good luck to you and yours,
F. B.

For me the reusable containers are more about saving money then being green. You can do through a ton of baggies in a year, or reuse the same container over and over. Also, the amount of water used is small compared to the huge landfills that pollute both earth and water.

I try to cut down on our trash we produce.
I use tupperward for godlfish, pretzels & sandwiches.
My family isn't on board fighting me every step of the way but I do what I can.
I buy in bulk when I can.
Somtimes we even find things in those big bulk bins.
I try to consolidate all of my errand running.
We use re-usable lunch bags instead of paper bags.
Recycle.
Repurpose.
We use plastic containers for nuts & bolts, etc.
I love finding new ways to re-use things.
I'm not the perfect "green" person by any means but I've got a good start.

I figure I am not using that much more water and we use many of her containers for everybody's lunches. Over the course of a year, that can be a crapton of little plastic baggies. If you use bags, look at the things that come in bags already. You might find that you "have" bags (like bread bags) that you can also re-use as necessary. You can also look at your practices. If you don't fill your dishwasher, start doing so. If quick wash will get them clean with little water, use that. ETc.

I don't have a hybrid b/c my car gets OK mileage and many hybrids haven't beaten it yet. And there's also the matter of the process to build the batteries for those hybrids....It's also paid off. I figure if I drive this car for 12+ years, I'm keeping it out of the landfill.

Personally, I think the small amount of water used to wash a container is much "greener" than a plastic bag sitting in a landfill. Also, most containers (used for items like goldfish and pretzels, or even grapes) don't need to be washed everyday, just wipe with a cloth.

I would also send my child with a refillable water bottle each day for lunch.

Water is a renewable resource. If you want to save it skip baths. If you want to minimize your use with washing reusable containers get one of those garden sprayers. The one they use for pesticides. An unused one of course. I used this during a camp trip and was able to do dishes and wash 2 kids pretty effectively.

I personally don't use ziploc bags often. I make my own bags for crackers, pretzels , etc. And I make sandwich wraps. I have made them with flannel and cotton before. I just throw them in with the wash. I also make apple wraps.

We shower
Our cars do 32 to a gallon. Our next one will probably be a hybrid
We rarely buy bottled water and never when there is access to a drinking fountain. We often have refillable bottles.
We recycle
We upcycle...make my girls dresses from their dad's old shirts. Sometime even pick some from goodwill
We wrap our presents in brown kraft paper (brown paper packages tied up with strings, these are a few of our favorite things ;P )
My daughters love to paint and we use those paintings (on paper) to wrap presents too.

I love the question, and lots of the answers! I have to say I plan to try and use more reusable containers in kiddo's lunches. It has been bugging me that I use so many ziplocs. So you can feel better knowing you paid it forward and got someone else to use less baggies!

We recycle, don't often buy bottled water, limit shower time, adhere to watering guidelines for our area, and try to be efficient with gas- don't have a hybrid and don't really want one, not yet anyway. We are vegetarian- that is probably the thing that reduces our footprint the most. But I'm always trying to be better in other ways! Thanks for the inspiration!

i use a sinkful of water and/or the dishwasher whether i'm washing a few items or a big meal prep's worth. so for me it's a no-brainer. re-usable containers save money and trash.
khairete
S.

I refill the goldfish or chip container and wash them about once or twice a week. I wash the sandwich container daily.

we wash and reuse. I also save bread bags, tortilla type bags etc to use in lunches and storage.

I use sandwich bags over and over again. If just a sandwhich was used, I may get 4 uses before I wash it again. You are being frugal and green that way. If something wet and gooey was inside I may wash it (or rinse it). I turn it inside out after I wash it and hang it up.

If you really want to be green, don't cut up and apple or orange and put it in the lunch box or bag. I reuse plastic grocery bags after they have been used. I use plastic grocery bags as ties when I tie up tomatoes and vegetables in my garden. Growing your vegetables in your garden is one of the best ways to stay green. If you are allowed to have chickens where you live, that is one of the best ways to stay green. And chicken eggs on free roaming chickens are much better than eggs our of the store.

Use vegetable table scraps to add to your compost pile. Vegetable scraps and shredded paper make a real good compost pile. Use the water that you used to wash your vegetables to water your garden. The water you cooked your potatoes in is good for your garden. When I buy, I buy things like in bulk or bulk bins. When I get chocolate covered peanuts or almonds they come in plastic containers with lids that screw on. Then I peel the labels off and put bulk rice or pasta in those in them and use a the amount I need. I have a 1/2 cup measuring cup in the container to measure out the amount of rice I need. I leave the measuring cup in the container so I never gets washed.

Good luck to you and yours.

http://www.lunchskins.com/ and throw them in the washing machine once a week.