Our week living without plastic
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- mark111757
- Posts: 1091
- Joined: Wed Apr 25, 2012 9:49 pm
- Location: USA
Our week living without plastic
From the extensive article in the times #2, Jan 15, 2018.
The prices at the end of the gif made me gasp....
The prices at the end of the gif made me gasp....
- Stokey Sue
- Posts: 4139
- Joined: Fri Apr 27, 2012 2:02 pm
- Location: Stoke Newington, London
Re: Our week living without plastic
It's interesting but there's an element of moving way upmarket to get the plastic-free list
The Sainsbury's plastic free shop will be different brands and grades
If they'd gone to an ordinary street market and not the snobby Borough Market they could have bought the veg plastic free at the same sort of prices as the Sainsbury with plastic shop, possibly even less. A street trader would offer you a plastic bag, but would be happy to hang on to it and give you the goods without
Some of that is obvious padding, 5 bananas £3.45? You can get 5 bananas plastic free for less than £1 almost anywhere (including Sainsbury), so why choose to buy them in a station shop which presumably is really selling them to passing travellers singly as snacks?
Another good example is the Lush shampoo £6.50. I loathe Lush and wouldn't buy it, but it's a premium brand. A good quality Sainsbury own brand will be in plastic but about £2 so that's bumping up the total gap quite a lot
There's a distinct element of codology in that list I think
The Sainsbury's plastic free shop will be different brands and grades
If they'd gone to an ordinary street market and not the snobby Borough Market they could have bought the veg plastic free at the same sort of prices as the Sainsbury with plastic shop, possibly even less. A street trader would offer you a plastic bag, but would be happy to hang on to it and give you the goods without
Some of that is obvious padding, 5 bananas £3.45? You can get 5 bananas plastic free for less than £1 almost anywhere (including Sainsbury), so why choose to buy them in a station shop which presumably is really selling them to passing travellers singly as snacks?
Another good example is the Lush shampoo £6.50. I loathe Lush and wouldn't buy it, but it's a premium brand. A good quality Sainsbury own brand will be in plastic but about £2 so that's bumping up the total gap quite a lot
There's a distinct element of codology in that list I think
- Stokey Sue
- Posts: 4139
- Joined: Fri Apr 27, 2012 2:02 pm
- Location: Stoke Newington, London
Re: Our week living without plastic
PS £6 for a pound of mince?
You would really have to look for somewher to spend that much, with or without plastic
You would really have to look for somewher to spend that much, with or without plastic
Re: Our week living without plastic
That "Borough Market" thing made me laugh too. A bit "Let them eat cakeish". The list seems a bit of a nonsense list.
I'm not dissing the underlying question, as the amount of unnecessary plastic that comes home in my shopping I find obscene. Plastics in the home have spiralled out of control too. When I moved here, many things were still made out of wood, metal, glass and fabrics. Much of that has been replaced with plastic products, and more than that, with plastic products that have ludicrously short lives to encourage obsolescence and replacement, where in earlier years they could have been mended and continue in service.
I'm not dissing the underlying question, as the amount of unnecessary plastic that comes home in my shopping I find obscene. Plastics in the home have spiralled out of control too. When I moved here, many things were still made out of wood, metal, glass and fabrics. Much of that has been replaced with plastic products, and more than that, with plastic products that have ludicrously short lives to encourage obsolescence and replacement, where in earlier years they could have been mended and continue in service.
- Alexandria
- Posts: 923
- Joined: Sat Aug 19, 2017 6:19 pm
- Location: Barcelona
Re: Our week living without plastic
Those prices are simply outrageous !
Barcelona, soulful & spirited, filled with fine art, amazing architecture, profoundly steeped in culture & history, and it engages all your senses, and food fancies.
- karadekoolaid
- Posts: 1773
- Joined: Fri Apr 27, 2012 1:40 pm
Re: Our week living without plastic
I wonder why on earth you'd want to buy "semi-skimmed" milk when the real thing will do
Re: Our week living without plastic
I always think of it as semi-skilled milk.
Pampy, I think that's because it isn't in plastic bottles, so presumably glass. Technically my milk in a glass bottle from the milkman costs me 75p a pint, so six pints would be £4.50. I've been tempted to go for supermarket, but the thought of all that wasted plastic stops me. If my milkman started using plastic bottles (which there was talk of happening, I believe some milkmen do...) I'd stop getting it delivered.
Pampy, I think that's because it isn't in plastic bottles, so presumably glass. Technically my milk in a glass bottle from the milkman costs me 75p a pint, so six pints would be £4.50. I've been tempted to go for supermarket, but the thought of all that wasted plastic stops me. If my milkman started using plastic bottles (which there was talk of happening, I believe some milkmen do...) I'd stop getting it delivered.
Re: Our week living without plastic
I didn't know that's how much it cost in glass bottles. I don't have milk delivered but I know that the milkman who delivers to my neighbours uses plastic bottles. I seem to remember that a few years ago, Sainsbury's (I think it was them) started to sell milk in something like a pouch but I've not seen or heard of it in quite a while.
- karadekoolaid
- Posts: 1773
- Joined: Fri Apr 27, 2012 1:40 pm
Re: Our week living without plastic
I seem to remember that a few years ago, Sainsbury's (I think it was them) started to sell milk in something like a pouch
Yep - they nicked the idea from a kangaroo
( yep, I was just leaving...... )
- Stokey Sue
- Posts: 4139
- Joined: Fri Apr 27, 2012 2:02 pm
- Location: Stoke Newington, London
Re: Our week living without plastic
It is or used to be common in Europe to buy, mainly UHT, milk in plastic pouches which you then decant into a jug or you can get a special (plastic!) holder in which to clip them to pour out the milk
We had them in South Africa too, I can never get the holder things to work
Anyway, it was those Sainsbury tried but UK consumers didn't take to them
We had them in South Africa too, I can never get the holder things to work
Anyway, it was those Sainsbury tried but UK consumers didn't take to them
Re: Our week living without plastic
Briefly mushrooms were sold in fibre cartons in Tesco. I kept this one, because the mushrooms keep better in the fridge in them (the plastic seems to make them "sweat"). It was an encouraging sign, but then they reverted to plastic, I wonder what the story was behind that. I would use the loose mushrooms, but often they are in considerably worse condition than the prepacked ones. I suspect that's partly deliberate to encourage the easier to manage prepacks, but it's also a sign that loose may be more popular than Tesco would like to admit. I don't think I've EVER seen the prepacks run out and the loose still available.
- Stokey Sue
- Posts: 4139
- Joined: Fri Apr 27, 2012 2:02 pm
- Location: Stoke Newington, London
Re: Our week living without plastic
Supermarkets used to give you special paper mushroom bags for loose mushrooms, precisely because mushrooms do sweat in plastic
I thought of them the other day
Morrisons no longer sell loose potatoes apart form some speciality ones, which is annoying as apart from the plastic I don't want 2.5 kg at once. I'd buy them from the greengrocer, but my local shops aren't very good for potatoes
I notice that plastic egg boxes have mainly gone out of fashion, most eggs come in fibre these days, I suspect less breakages.
I thought of them the other day
Morrisons no longer sell loose potatoes apart form some speciality ones, which is annoying as apart from the plastic I don't want 2.5 kg at once. I'd buy them from the greengrocer, but my local shops aren't very good for potatoes
I notice that plastic egg boxes have mainly gone out of fashion, most eggs come in fibre these days, I suspect less breakages.
Re: Our week living without plastic
My local Sainsburys still does the paper bags for mushrooms, but the only ones you can buy loose are the white 'cup' type, anything else is pre-packed in plastic boxes and with plastic film over.
Re: Our week living without plastic
i've just had an email pertaining to this subject:
Hi there,
I’ve just signed a petition calling on UK supermarkets to go plastic-free, and it would mean a lot to me if you’d add your name too!
From turtles entangled in six pack rings to whales with stomachs full of plastic bags, the effects of plastic pollution can be devastating.
UK supermarket Iceland has just announced its own-brand packaging is going plastic-free.
By ditching plastic packaging, supermarkets have the power to lead the way in dramatically reducing the amount of single-use plastic produced.
Please join me in calling on UK supermarkets to ditch throwaway plastic packaging.
Sign the petition >> https://secure.greenpeace.org.uk/plasti ... rmarket-ef
Thank you!
-just in case anyone's interested.
Hi there,
I’ve just signed a petition calling on UK supermarkets to go plastic-free, and it would mean a lot to me if you’d add your name too!
From turtles entangled in six pack rings to whales with stomachs full of plastic bags, the effects of plastic pollution can be devastating.
UK supermarket Iceland has just announced its own-brand packaging is going plastic-free.
By ditching plastic packaging, supermarkets have the power to lead the way in dramatically reducing the amount of single-use plastic produced.
Please join me in calling on UK supermarkets to ditch throwaway plastic packaging.
Sign the petition >> https://secure.greenpeace.org.uk/plasti ... rmarket-ef
Thank you!
-just in case anyone's interested.
- Stokey Sue
- Posts: 4139
- Joined: Fri Apr 27, 2012 2:02 pm
- Location: Stoke Newington, London
Re: Our week living without plastic
Useful (national) round up of zero packaging waste shops
https://thezerowaster.com/zero-waste-near-you/
https://thezerowaster.com/zero-waste-near-you/
Re: Our week living without plastic
There's only one place listed in Hertfordshire on that listing, the website says, "In St Albans, Eat Wholefoods open their warehouse on Tuesday, Thursdays and Fridays for customers to refill their own containers."
Had a look at their website, and it looks more like a big garage than "warehouse"! And there are still loads of plastic containers and plastic bags as far as I can see.
https://www.eatwholefoods.co.uk/st-albans-shop/
Google Streetview 360 degree lookaround inside the store:
https://www.google.co.uk/maps/place/Eat ... 7303?hl=en
Had a look at their website, and it looks more like a big garage than "warehouse"! And there are still loads of plastic containers and plastic bags as far as I can see.
https://www.eatwholefoods.co.uk/st-albans-shop/
Google Streetview 360 degree lookaround inside the store:
https://www.google.co.uk/maps/place/Eat ... 7303?hl=en
- Stokey Sue
- Posts: 4139
- Joined: Fri Apr 27, 2012 2:02 pm
- Location: Stoke Newington, London
Re: Our week living without plastic
I wonder if we will revert to cellophane? I remember years ago sending a young colleague to a local whole foods cooperative to get an ingredient he needed, and he was amazed how beautiful all the groceries looked stacked up in plain cellophane, and how nice the ladies behind the counter were (he was used to Tesco)
Cellophane (glassine) is cellulose, so compostable
Cellophane (glassine) is cellulose, so compostable
Re: Our week living without plastic
Not a lot I can do about this:
Bought my favourite frozen Punjabi Samosas yesterday, and they have changed from a cardboard box to a plastic bag.
I wonder if it takes more energy to keep a cardboard box frozen than a plastic bag?
Bought my favourite frozen Punjabi Samosas yesterday, and they have changed from a cardboard box to a plastic bag.
I wonder if it takes more energy to keep a cardboard box frozen than a plastic bag?
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