send ‘em packing! (part 2)
ok, so we know that packing you kid’s lunch makes you feel better about what is going into his or her body, but how does that help the rest of the earth? here are some reasons why packing it is the “green” way to go.
consider the alternative. most schools use disposable everything because of sanitation guidelines and staffing limitations. if your child is buying a school lunch, they are contributing the average 67lbs of waste a year generated by every school aged child in the united states.
consider the possibilities. in 2001, when a group of parents noticed their children were generating so much garbage at snack and lunch time, they contacted the school and began the waste-free lunch program, which is now a national movement in both schools and businesses. do some research and find out if there is such a program in your area; if not, consider pushing one off the ground using the helps and guidelines on the official website.
consider the impact. if from your child’s first day of school she never sees a disposable object in her lunchbox, that will be the norm for her, and maybe for the whole next generation. it may well be, with a little effort from us as parents, the idea of unnecessary packaging and silly printed wrappers will become a thing of the past, and children can learn to focus on what is really important at lunch time – healthy food!
consider the savings. just as with disposable diapers, the cost of one time use adds up quickly! you may think it is cheap to buy brown paper bags and zip top baggies for your child’s lunch, but think of the cost piled up day after day, week after week, and year after year. if instead, you could find quality lunch packing materials that would last for years on end, you could save hundreds, and possibly thousands of dollars over your child’s school career. laptop lunches, sistema, crocodile creek, and lock&lock are just a few of the major brands of lunch packing materials made with the environment in mind. keep your eyes peeled online and at the store, as there are new brands on the market everyday.
to be continued…
