Governments around the world are facing up to the challenge of cutting down on the use of single use plastics. From cotton buds to takeaway food trays, we became used to the convenience of mass producing these cheap items and being able to throw them away without thinking about them. But whilst they disappear from our minds easily enough, they stick around in the environment for much longer. Plastic could take centuries to break down naturally, which means that it takes up space in landfill, is strewn across our beaches and ends up in vast islands in the oceans, threatening the lives and health of marine animals and, as a consequence, our health too. As a food industry, we are improving all the time and replacing plastic trays and plates with sustainable alternatives. We supply a host of sustainably sourced, recycled, recyclable, biodegradable or compostable food packaging items to many clients who are making great strides in improving the eco-credentials of their businesses. However, there are still many items we use in the sector that we perhaps forget are single use plastics
Items We Forget Are Single Use Plastics
- Plastic straws
Straws are such a small item, but we get through 8.5 billion in the UK every year. From fun kids drinks to using a straw to protect that killer lipstick, they are an ever present of the food and drink industry. Thankfully, there is an alternative to filling the seas with plastic straws.
We stock paper straws in all manner of different colours, so you needn’t compromise on the fun, even though you are chucking out the plastic. They are recyclable, biodegradable and compostable, making them the ideal option for adding to your drinks orders.
- Sauce pots
It’s likely that your customers don’t even consider the sauce pots you give them for ketchup and other sauces and dips. They are much more interested in the contents! However, too many single use plastic pots being given out from takeaway companies can contribute to the scourge of waste in the seas.
When seeking out an alternative, look at our RPET sauce pots, all of which are 100% recyclable.
- Cutlery
Of course, there are some takeaways that you simply can’t eat without cutlery, but this can often add to the world’s single use plastic waste mountain. The good news is that you can eliminate these wasteful items from your business.
We provide compostable cutlery as well as wooden utensils that are sustainably sourced, will biodegrade and which are recyclable too. The old school plastic chip fork might be an institution, but these environmentally friendly upgrades are a much more sustainable way to devour your food. For people who don’t use their fingers, of course.
- Food bags
Plastic bags were once the go-to food carrying method of choice, but no more. Customers might not immediately identify it as an integral part of their food packaging, but carrying those big orders back to their hungry friends and family certainly requires a bag.
Of course, you don’t need to rely on those thin, fairly useless single use plastic bags that used to break at the drop of a hat any more. We have paper bags and food wraps of all kinds that are created using sustainable items and which will help customers carry their food with confidence.
If you are ready to ditch single use plastics and embrace a more sustainable way of packaging food, talk to us today and browse our packaging selection.