it’s all about the packaging, mainly around the kitchen.
tips to find bulk, look for alternatives, change our habits.

Location:  Saint-Amable, QC, Canada

Name: Vanessa G.

Week: 1

Personal Info:

http://myplasticfreelife.com/plastic-challenge/

List of plastic items REFUSED this week. (Yay!)
I didn’t buy any coffee from the coffee shop (plastic lid/ to-go)

Total items collected: 55

Total weight:

Items: Recyclable
-Mushroom packaging (not the cling wrap)
-1 cookie packaking
-4 bottle caps (Almond milk cartons)
-1 lettuce packaging
-2 damaged Mega Blocks
-1 large damaged bottle cap
-1 broken earphone piece
-1 plant cup

Items: Nonrecyclable
-2 styrofoam packaging (fish)
-3 tofu wrappers
-cling-wrap (mushroom wrapping)
-3 cheese wrappers
-1 bag of pasta
-2 sanitary pad wrappers
-2 bag of chips
-1 candy bag
-1 pepperonni bag
-6 milk bags
-1 garlic bread wrapper
-1 bag of frozen corn
-cough lozenges packaging
-scotch tape
-1 balloon
-1 styrofoam bike pad
-17 miscellaneous bags (grocery, vegetables wrapping, publi-sac flyers…)

What items can I easily replace with plastic free or less plastic alternatives?
-reusable bags for my boyfriend (instead of plastic grocery bags)
-washable sanitary pads or Diva cup
-buy milk cartons instead of milk bags
-find places where to buy bulk food
-i can make my own cookies (but my boyfriend bought Oreos)

What items would I be willing to give up if a plastic free alternative doesn’t exist?
-chips (but my boyfriend will find it hard!)
-balloon (but the kids always ask for one at the grocery store cashier)

What items are essential and seem to have no plastic-free alternative?
i mainly see food wrapping & packaging, so i think everything can have an alternative…

What lifestyle change(s) might be necessary to reduce my plastic consumption?
try to convince my boyfriend to lose some of his (bad) habits : junk food (chips/ candy/ soft drinks even if there are none in this week’s picture), keep reusable bags in his car for when he drops by the grocery store on his way home.

What one plastic item am I willing to give up or replace this week?
junk food packaging

What other conclusions, if any, can I draw?
our plastic mainly comes from our groceries. We will need to be on the lookout for unwrapped, bulk option