In a world where green washing abounds, it can be difficult to choose a greener to-go container for your business. Unfortunately, almost every choice contains positives and negatives.
Traditional To-Go Plastics:
Almost everyone knows that Styrofoam clam-shells are the worst option. These are very rarely recycled. They release styrene, a known carcinogen, when heated. Sure, they may provide insulation, but at what cost? Styrofoam (or polystyrene) floats, flies, and sticks around forever.
We know how to recognize expanded polystyrene, but did you know many clear plastic clam-shells are also made of #6 plastic? It would be prudent to avoid these too!
Another option are #5 polypropylene to-go containers. These usually robust, reusable, microwavable, and dishwasher safe. Polypropylene is widely considered one of the safer plastics. But will your customers re-use these enough to justify their extra weight (and cost!)? In theory, they are also recyclable, but infra-red can’t sort black plastic, so it often goes to the landfill anyway.
How many to-go containers get recycled appropriately? Not many! Between food contamination and our demand for convenience, the numbers are disappointing.
For more on plastic types, their safety, and recycling them, please click HERE.
To-Go Boxes:
Many to-go boxes use a recycled fiber for rigidity, and a lining to keep the fiber dry and strong.
Most of the containers we have seen locally are BioPlusEarth by fold-Pak, who line their food containers with LDPE. If these are composted, whole, in a home tumbler, it is reasonably easy to remove the plastic liners once the cardboard has broken down. However, many people are not willing to take this extra step.
Cardboard lined with a film (called poly-lined fiberboard) is also harder to recycle, so check with your local recycling facilities before possibility contaminating their collection. If they are accepted, make sure they are clean and dry!
If this liner is made of PLA (Poly Lactic Acid aka plant based plastic), it can be composted in industrial facilities. However, many facilities are not certified to handle food waste, only green waste, limiting your local options.
For more information on why PLA can’t usually be composted at home, click HERE.
Another way manufacturers keep the fiber clean and dry is using a hydrophobic coating. At first, this appears easier to compost, but concerns were raised in late 2018 about the PFAS (Per- and Polyfluoroalkyl Substances) contained in the hydrophobic/non-stick/grease-proof coating.
PFAS are alarming because they don’t break down in the composting process, and they can accumulate in plants and water sources. They are linked with increased cancer risk, they effect learning and growth in children, and they interfere with the body’s natural hormones. One popular to-go box, BioPlus Terra II, uses Cascades Sonoco’s FlexSHIELD™ which was found to contain PFAS. PFAS have since been removed from the coating, but old stock may still be found through 2020.
Fiber based clam-shells may (but not always) also be coated with a hydrophobic/non-stick/grease-proof coating. Again, it is always prudent to check what this coating is, be it wax, PLA, plastic, or PFAS. Un-coated options are only suitable for certain foods.
The Greenest Solution
In a perfect world, encouraging customers to bring there own clean & dry to-go container would be the most eco-friendly solution. Offering a discount could encourage participation, as well as helping to spread awareness about plastic pollution.
In a world where social media rules, little changes can have big impacts on awareness!
Another’s way to reduce single-use plastic is to only offer bags or cutlery on request. Consumers, be prepared! Keep cutlery in the office, lunch bag, or even in your car! Every little bit helps!
If you are looking to choose your own reusable to-go container, glass is best if you need to microwave the contents. For other times, consider stainless steel, which is available both insulated and non-insulated. When well taken care of, your container should last you many years.
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Hi, I live in St. maarten and am trying to recycle. I put paper and plastic in one garbage bag and glass in another. I brought it to Meadowlands, but on the green dumpster it says ‘no plastic bags’. How can I carry the plastic and paper items if they don’t want plastic bags? Do they accept soiled plastic and paper? Can I leave the lids on the soiled glass bottles? I can’t get through to them online or by phone. Are they really recycling? The procedures are unclear.
We aren’t affiliated with Meadowlands, so we can’t answer on their behalf. However, the general advice is that everything to be recycled must be clean and dry. On SXM, recyclables must be stockpiled until the batch is large enough to be shipped off island economically.
Plastic and glass is usually acceptably clean with a simple rinse, but something like a pizza box that has absorbed grease is not recyclable. Keep in mind, that wet corrugated cardboard (even once dry again) is usually not recyclable either.
As for plastic bags – thin plastic clogs up the machinery used to process recyclables and is time consuming to remove. In other countries, plastic film is sometimes recycled, but through separate collection points.
Our advice would be to carry your recyclables to the recycling depot in a reusable bag, empty it into the designated bins, and take it home again to reuse!
As for the glass jars – there are processes to remove contamination from crushed glass – but best practice would be to remove the lids before hand and put them in the designated area.
Recycling contamination is a problem globally, and contaminated material often goes to the landfill because it is not financially practical to de-contaminate it.
Thank you for your question, and thank you for recycling! Every bit helps!
Thank you!