Pack a Waste-Free Lunch

 

A waste-free lunch means that you have no packaging to throw away when you're done - nothing other than apple cores, banana and orange peels, peach or cherry pits. The best way to reduce garbage is to not create it. (source: Environmental Forum of Marin)

 

Five Simple Ways to Pack a Waste-Free Lunch

 

YES	NO
REUSABLE carrier (cloth bag, lunchbox)	NO throw-away bags
REUSABLE containers	NO plastic wrap, foil or styrofoam
THERMOS for drinks	NO single-use cartons or cans
CLOTH NAPKIN to wash and re-use	NO paper napkins
SILVERWARE to wash and re-use	NO plastic forks and spoons

 

Lunch Waste Facts

 

ALUMINUM FOIL	600,000 tons of aluminum foil is produced every year in America. A large amount of electricity is used in manufacturing foil.
ALUMINUM AND TIN CANS	More than half of the 100 billion cans sold in the U.S. last year were landfilled or incinerated.
BANANA AND ORANGE PEELS	As food decomposes in a landfill it generates harmful greenhouse gases such as methane (try composting or vermiculture!)
JUICE BOXES	Inorganic waste may take hundreds of year to decompose, or may not decompose at all.
PAPER BAGS AND NAPKINS	It is estimated that 17 trees are cut down for every ton of non-recycled paper
PLASTIC BOTTLES, FORKS, WRAP	Every year, Americans throw away enough paper and plastic cups, forks, and spoons to circle the equator 300 times.
STYROFOAM	Styrofoam is very difficult to recycle. The best way to protect the environment is to stop using it.