Plastic Free July

Posted by Melissa Robertson-Bye on

At the end of June a friend posted a book she was interested in called 101 Ways to Go Zero Waste by Kathryn Kellogg. I ended up downloading this book on Audible to listen to during my trip to Kingston. While listening I realized how much waste and single use plastic we use in our home. And decided that I wanted to make some changes in our home. Now I haven't implemented all 101 ways because I don't think for our family becoming 100% waste free is doable. But reducing our waste is a start right?

If you follow me on Instagram and watch my stories you know that our building doesn't have compost and we can only recycle our paper and cardboard products in the blue bin. Since this changed in May we keep our plastic, tin and glass inside and on recycling day (Friday's) we put these items outside in a bag for the recycling truck to take with the paper and cardboard. I haven't yet found a solution for the composting.

During this last month we have cut back on produce and bakery plastic bags by using either mesh or upcycled fabric bags. We shop at a local wholesale produce warehouse that supplies local businesses their produce or at local farmers markets. The few times that we get produce from the grocery store I make sure I have my bags handy. We have also started going to the bulk barn with our own jars and containers to purchase pantry items that we need. We are currently finishing some pantry items we have in cardboard boxes and tin but will slowly move towards bulk items after that.

Jesse and I were having a conversation one evening when he said that there isn't a way for my business to become plastic free. So I started to think. Silicone is recyclable so the beads and pendants we use can be recycled. So the only issue is our packaging. We have been using a plastic bag with a glossy insert card. Neither which are good for the environment. 

To help brainstorm I turned to a local women's business page to get some ideas. I then did research with a local business that I get my packaging supplies from. I ordered a few different items to see what would work best with my products. And we settled on cotton bags. We have stamped our bags and they have a dual purpose as you can also use them to store your un-used Chewlery. The insert card has been printed on recycled material and is half the size of our original card. We are not using anything glossy so it can also be recycled when your child no longer needs their teething products.

Why did we do this? There is so much packaging for everything that we purchase as parents. From diapers, wipes, toys, clothing and accessories. And everything comes with plastic! Babies grow fast! The average baby will be in 5 sizes of clothing in their first year. That is a lot of tags, plastic, cloth and waste! So if we can help the environment just a little by giving families a waste free option for their Chewlery then we have succeeded. 

Leave us a comment telling us what you think of our new packaging!