Feel good about how you serve your food with these eye-popping statistics about plastic pollution.
The Facts
Our country’s gorgeous beaches and scenic coasts are under threat from a growing garbage catastrophe which must be reversed quickly. Australians use 130kg of plastic per person each year, on average. Only around 12% of it is ever recycled.
Even more alarming, up to 130,000 tonnes of plastic will end up in streams and the ocean. Once in the water, plastic poses a threat to our aquatic life. Studies have also shown plastics ingested by animals enter the food chain and end up on our plates.
Plastic is a very adaptable material that was designed to be sturdy and long-lasting. Most plastics today, however, are intended to be used just once before being thrown away. While convenient for a few moments, plastics of all kinds frequently wind up in landfills, along the sides of highways, as litter in parks, and pollution in our sea. This waste takes hundreds of years before it will break down into microplastics.
Plastic is ubiquitous, and it isn’t going away anytime soon. But, working together, we can address this pressing waste problem right now.
How you can help
Plastic Cutlery
You normally get more than just food when you go out or order takeaway. The cutlery, the bags – all made of plastic – are usually included. Recycling can help a little, but in Australia, it is difficult to recycle plastic cutlery. Recycling machines are unable to separate them due to their shape, and most end up in landfills, taking millennia to decompose.
Next time you order takeaway food, say no to the additional plastic. If the venue can’t offer plastic alternatives, such as our line of eco-friendly FSC wood cutlery, then opt-out. It’s worth noting that the Queensland government has banned single-use plastics, including plastic cutlery, since September 2021.
Plastic Containers
Every year, approximately 78 million metric tonnes of plastic packaging are manufactured globally, with plastic output expected to rise by 40% by 2030. The packaging industry uses mostly virgin polymers, and many of them for single-use food packaging, shopping bags, and beverage bottles.
Make sure the packaging is planet-friendly the next time you order takeout. Pizza and Mexican food are usually sold in non-plastic packaging, which makes them great options. Avoid pre-packaged meals. You can find out your restaurant’s packaging options ahead of time. Most restaurants will happily place your food into your own reusable container if you ask. Plastic alternatives, such as our biodegradable clam-shell containers, for the hospitality sector are readily available. You just need to ask!
Plastic Plates
Plastic plates are inexpensive and convenient for hosting parties, picnics, and in food courts. Due to their shape, most recycling centres are unable to sort these plates, so they typically wind up as rubbish in landfills. Switching to biodegradable plates, such as our 100% compostable plates, manufactured from unbleached sugarcane pulp (bagasse), is a simple answer.
Looking at making the switch from single-use plastics to compostable alternatives?
Check out our range here.