Quick and Easy Tips to Create Waste Free Lunches

Bridget Ilene Delaney

When you are conscious about the environment, it is likely that you want your children to bring waste free lunches to school. However, this can be difficult because of all the singing serving products targeted to kids. It is easy to fall into the trap of buying single use products since they are easy to grab and throw into a lunch box as you send your children to school. Follow these tips to help create waste free lunches.

Use Laptop Lunches or Bento Boxes

Bento boxes are from Japanese culture. They are boxes for food that are small and are made to hold only the food, but not any wrapping. This means that no trash is thrown away when these boxes are used. The cafeteria should have flatware that your children can use to eat the lunches. Laptop Lunches are the same type of idea, but are an American invention.

Avoid Single Use Products

Even though they can be tempting, avoid single use products. Try not to bring your children grocery shopping, as they will be likely to beg for these products as they are advertised on television during children's shows and other children may bring them to school.

Buy in Bulk

Buy food in bulk, as long as bulk doesn't mean a ton of extra packaging and the same amount of food. More food in bigger containers will reduce the amount of trash your family uses.

Use Reusable Containers

If you cannot use a Bento box or a Laptop Lunch, at least use reusable containers. Don't package lunches in brown bags and sandwich bags. Instead, put lunches in containers that can be washed. If needed, but these containers in lunch boxes and material lunch bags.

Wash Used Sandwich Bags

If you don't have reusable containers, have your children keep the plastic sandwich bags that you use to pack their lunches. Wash them in the sink when your children get home.

Published by Bridget Ilene Delaney

Bridget Ilene Delaney is the author of "This is My Bucket." She has a Bachelor of Science degree in Journalism. She writes many articles on a variety of other subjects. She is interested in diabetes compli...  View profile

4 Comments

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  • Lori Gunn4/9/2012

    The milk cartons that used to be served at school were the right size for freezing homemade spaghetti sauce - recycling before it was popular. I still remember the day my mom divided juice into 3 covered cups and my bag fell off the top shelf from my cubby. - the bag held the juice but the food got soaked.:

  • Lori Gunn2/1/2012

    Great hints.

  • Lori Gunn2/1/2012

    Excellent presentation!

  • Nora12/26/2011

    Very useful tips.

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