The Well Equipped Guide to Kicking Your Plastic Habit
Like palm oil in processed foods and Ed Sheeran songs at CVS, single-use plastics are simply unavoidable. They're especially rampant in the food space: supermarket ingredients come in plastic packaging, leftovers are wrapped up in cling wrap, takeout lunch salads come in plastic clamshells, and iced coffee is expediently delivered in plastic cups. (Oh, and who could forget those sea turtle-killing straws?)
All of this sent us on the hunt for the best ways to avoid and replace single-use plastics. We tested alternatives to plastic snack baggies, gave beeswax wrap a try, and found travel mugs that are as stylish as a Starbucks cup was in a 2005 paparazzi photo. And then we compiled this intel so that you can avoid plastics, too. Scroll down to find all the ways to finally rid yourself of plastic in 2019.
Photo by Chelsea Kyle1/7Ditch the Cling Wrap
It's easy enough to stash most of your leftovers in glass or plastic storage containers. And yet, there are times when it feels like nothing but plastic wrap will do. A half an avocado, say. Or the sandwich you stick into your backpack for lunch. Don't you just want to wrap those guys in snuggly plastic blankets that contribute to the melting of our ice caps and the rising of our oceans and the downfall of our planet?
For these urges and others, there's an alternative to plastic: beeswax wrap. These swatches of reusable cloth coated in tacky beeswax can be used to wrap foods, cover bowls, even contain a handful of nuts—in theory, anyway. We tested six widely-available brands to see if any of them could do everything that plastic can. Read about our favorite alternative to plastic wrap here.
Photo by Chelsea Kyle, Food Styling by Anna Stockwell2/7Go Pack a Lunch
You know the idea that if you buy nice workout clothes, you'll be inspired to go to the gym? We're translating that theory to lunch time: If you've got the best, most attractive container, you'll be excited to tote your lunch to work and skip the $20 mediocre salad (and the plastic container it comes in).
We tested out 15 containers to find the best options for all kinds of lunches: salads, soups, grain bowls, and more. Find out our favorite here.
Photo by Ted + Chelsea Cavanaugh, Prop Styling by Nathaniel James, Food Styling by Laura Rege3/7Find a New Home for Your Goldfish
Deputy Editor Anya Hoffman began her quest for an eco-friendly alternative to plastic snack baggies when she realized what an absurd amount she was using on a daily basis to contain her children's after-school snacks.
"To keep my kids fed through long afternoons away from home, I was buying enormous packages of pretzels, dried cranberries, and Goldfish from Costco and then dividing the contents into a billion little snack baggies. If you do the math, 3–4 baggies per day per child adds up to 30–40 plastic baggies every single week. That's an astounding amount of waste. When my town stopped recycling plastic bags of any sort, the last vestige of justification I was clinging to disappeared. It was time to find a better option." Read more about her journey to find reusable snack bags here.
Photo by Chelsea Kyle4/7Invest in the Best Travel Coffee Mug
When you've got a long commute to work, it's ideal to have coffee 1) before the trek to work, 2) while in transit to work, and 3) the moment you get to work. To avoid the wasteful (and expensive!) temptation of a coffee shop brew, you'll need the very best insulated mug. Fill it with java from your home coffee maker and be on your way, or fill it up at your local coffee shop. (Sometimes shops will even give you a discount!) For the best travel mugs available right now, read here.
Photo by Chelsea Kyle, Prop Styling by Beatrice Chastka5/7Take Your Utensils on a Tour of the World
Associate Editor Joe Sevier started compiling his DIY travel silverware set when he stashed a bamboo straw inside a travel toothbrush container and tossed it into his tote bag. Next, he realized that the handkerchief he always carried was just as good at fixing a spill as a stack of paper napkins. Eventually that handkerchief turned into a proper napkin and was accompanied by three pieces of cutlery from an old set of IKEA flatware.
"Yes, I did feel like a giant dork the first time I used my travel silverware in public," Joe writes. "But seriously, no one cares that you're pulling out your own fork at Sweetgreen and most people will probably be impressed." Read more about how Joe assembled a to-go cutlery set here.
Photo by Chelsea Kyle, Food Styling by Olivia Mack Anderson6/7But Really, Stop with the Plastic Straws, Okay?
We don't need to fill you in about why plastic straws are bad. But we do need to fill you in about why reusable straws are good. After drinking from a variety of non-plastic straws over the course of two weeks, we can confidently tell you that the winner of our best reusable straw product test was...a tie. Read more here to see which winner is best for you.
Photo by Caleb Adams7/7Keep Going!
Still have some plastic clinging to your routines? Check out even more ways to banish it forever.
