Have you ever been fooled by a bowl of plastic fruit? The apples and bananas can look so delicious, it’s easy to be duped into thinking they’re the real thing.
Fortunately for us humans, the food on our plates usually is real. And even if it weren’t, we could quickly feel the difference before we ever took a bite.
But sadly for turtles and other sea life, it’s a completely different story. Their “plates” are becoming more and more crowded with harmful, plastic, fake “food” that’s choking, strangling and even killing them.
Currently, 32% of all plastic packaging is never collected—instead, it eventually finds its way into natural ecosystems like streams, rivers and oceans.
We salute those who are doing everything you can to keep plastic out of the environment. Let us know about the small, conscious choices you’re making in the comments below.Resources:
Recently I had ordered my grocery shopping online as it provided me with convenience and was actually to help me keep to a budget and avoid the impulse buys at the supermarket. I was happy until it arrived. I counted that there was 20 plastic bags used for our weekly shop…20!!! One had one single cucumber in it, which in itself was individually wrapped. It wasn’t just that though, every piece of my ‘fresh’ fruit and veggies came in plastic container or plastic bag. What began as a way to budget made me feel guilty for just how much waste was generated from one single shop. I have now resorted to going to the shops… with my Norwex produce bags and Grocery Bag. My conscious can recover while I recycle those plastic bags.
I get my groceries delivered every week. I shop with Peapod and they strongly encourage that all plastic bags be returned with the totes (or taken back at delivery) so that they can recycle them. All plastic bags go to a recycling center in Colorado. I don’t like to shop, but I do have cloth bags for the rare times when I shop at a grocery store or any other store. I save money buying my groceries online, it is convenient, helps me stay within my budget because it stops impulse buying, saves time, saves gas, and more. All good!
I wish that they had something similar in Australia
We eliminate the need for single-use plastic by using reusable produce and shopping bags. I carry stainless steel straws when we go out so my family can so no to plastic drinking straws. We also take along small sets of cutlery just in case a restaurant only has plastic utensils as an option. We shop at our closest zero-waste grocery store, In.gredients in Austin, as often as we can. The intentional act of filling my own containers with exactly what we need helps keep us plastic-free.
I am no longer using plastic bags and am refusing them at the store. Instead I have reusable bags in my car and bring them with me to shop.
More plastic then fish in the sea….the idea of it just breaks my heart.
It is sad, isn’t it Tami? And very scary too!
I never thought about it in those terms! Great analogy…
I hope there are more people on board with plastic collection and recycling. It’s such a big problem now.