One of the many other problems with recycling besides this tidbit, is the fact that most people don’t even follow the first two instructions before recycling. Nobody reuses anything and nobody has reduced their consumption.
There’s a bulk food store near me and it allows BYO containers (or you can use one of their compostable bags). It’s great! A little bit more work (you need to tare your/container write down the empty weight), but you get your goods in the container of your choice.
That would be a zero waste store, there are a few of those around. To find one, this website has an overly generous list of such stores in the United States. Many of the stores listed are not actually zero waste stores though (i.e. Natural Pantry). So for those who want to use that list to find a zero-waste store, it is important to note the stores near them and go to them one by one (or look them up) to see if they are zero-waste and what they offer. If a suitable store is found, then some groceries can be bought without disposable packaging.
This does come at a price, though. The store I use has prices that are, on average, about 3 times higher per unit weight than the bargain brand at a regular store. I can afford that, and for some consumers an organic/local/premium/etc. quality is worth it, but many people cannot afford it. The current system of excessive single-use packaging is unfortunately very labor-efficient (which is why it was adopted in the first place), and that shows in the prices.
One of the many other problems with recycling besides this tidbit, is the fact that most people don’t even follow the first two instructions before recycling. Nobody reuses anything and nobody has reduced their consumption.
There’s a bulk food store near me and it allows BYO containers (or you can use one of their compostable bags). It’s great! A little bit more work (you need to tare your/container write down the empty weight), but you get your goods in the container of your choice.
That would be a zero waste store, there are a few of those around. To find one, this website has an overly generous list of such stores in the United States. Many of the stores listed are not actually zero waste stores though (i.e. Natural Pantry). So for those who want to use that list to find a zero-waste store, it is important to note the stores near them and go to them one by one (or look them up) to see if they are zero-waste and what they offer. If a suitable store is found, then some groceries can be bought without disposable packaging.
This does come at a price, though. The store I use has prices that are, on average, about 3 times higher per unit weight than the bargain brand at a regular store. I can afford that, and for some consumers an organic/local/premium/etc. quality is worth it, but many people cannot afford it. The current system of excessive single-use packaging is unfortunately very labor-efficient (which is why it was adopted in the first place), and that shows in the prices.