How to Pack a Waste‐Free Lunch

Source: wikiHow

Disposable Food Packaging to Avoid

Quick Tips for Reducing Food Waste

1. 1 Buy a reusable lunch box instead of using paper bags. Find a lunch box or bag that’s large enough to hold the food you usually pack. Keep the lunch box in a fridge to keep your food cold until lunchtime. When you’re finished eating, make sure to bring your box back home to use the next day.
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   • Look for an insulated lunch box if you need to keep food hot or cold. If you don’t have an insulated lunch box or access to a fridge, put a reusable ice pack in your lunch box to keep it cold.
   • Steel lunch boxes are great alternatives if you want to avoid using plastic or other packing containers.
   • Lunch boxes are sold in many stores throughout the year, but more designs will be available during the late summer when back to school shopping occurs.
   • If you need to use a brown paper bag, be sure to recycle it when you’re finished.
2. 2 Put food in resealable plastic containers. Avoid using plastic bags to store your food. Use portion-sized containers to reduce the amount of space you use inside your lunch box. When you’re finished with your lunch, put the containers back in your lunch box so you can wash them at home.^[2]
   • Reusable containers also help you save money since you don’t have to keep buying plastic storage bags.
   • Bento boxes are reusable containers with multiple compartments so you can store many kinds of food in one easy to carry package.

   Use glass container if you need to microwave your food. Glass is the most microwave-safe container to use. Just be careful since it could be hot when you remove it.

   Use cloth for dry foods. Cloth bags work great for sandwiches, grapes, and other foods that aren’t wet. However, food wrapped in a cloth can be easily crushed.

3. 3 Pour drinks into a reusable bottle. Fill a hard plastic bottle with your preferred drink rather than buying single-serve bottles. Add a few ice cubes to keep your drink cold. When you’re finished with your drink, you can rinse it out and fill it with water throughout the day. Wash your bottle each night to use again the next day.^[3]
   • Keep hot drinks, or even soup, in a Thermos to keep them piping hot.
   • Wide-mouthed bottles make it easier to wash the insides and add ice cubes.

   Tip: Avoid using juice boxes or pouches since these create a lot of waste. Pour juice from a large bottle at…

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