This month has definitely been effective for looking more in depth into the whole plastic predicament and noticing the plastics lurking in our supply chains and hidden in commonly used products. It’s one thing choosing paper packaging for rice and couscous, and saying no to single use carry bags and take-away boxes, but it takes a bit more investigation to make sure that as a consumer, you are not purchasing hidden plastics.

So what are the hidden plastics that are hard to notice? The most obvious would be packaging that looks like it is made of a single material, such as take-away cups, and milk cartons. These are very often coated with a thin plastic film. A lot of packaging which looks like it is made out of paper outside and looks ‘green’, such as the Kraft-paper packaging for teas, coffees, seeds, superfood (generally found in health sections of supermarkets) are often lined with plastic inside as well. Here is where balance comes in. We do want to reduce our consumption of plastic, but when in doubt, it is better to do for a single material packaging which can be recycled, instead of composite packaging which can only be landfilled at this point.

Another major hidden plastic is in the clothes we wear. Most of our clothing, unless it is made up 100% of a natural material, is commonly mixed with polymers such as polyesters. These plastics are going into our seas and oceans as microfibers which are now being found in sea salt, shellfish and other marine organism. When shopping in the future try and look out for material which is natural, such as cottons, linens, wools. Yes, these do tend to be on the more expensive side, but you can also go to second-hand shops and markets. This way, if you are buying synthetic material, at least you would not be contributing to the production of more material deriving from unrenewable resources. Otherwise, shops like PeopleTree produce sustainable and fair-trade items. It is also good to minimise, and this month I realise that we do not need to consume as much as we do. A few good clothing items that last, are better than a 100 that were produced through unjust labour conditions and have contributed to polluting our environment.

I also notices that I was falling into the habit of eating out without paying attention to the fact, that the ingredients being used to prepare my meal at cafes were most likely packaged in plastics. It feels daunting to be a completely knowledgeable consumer and to make sure that no plastic is used in the supply chain, so I think the following rules work well in ensuring that the least amount of plastic was used or waste generated in the process of delivering a consumable:

• Buy local as much as possible. You can buy fruit and veg straight from a farmer to ensure that there were no plastics used in the transportation.
• Buy clothes which are made out of 100% natural material such as cotton, linen, wool
• Prepare lunches and dinners at home and minimise eating out. This will be good for your health, the planet and your wallet
• Look into your general buying habits and see what you can cut out; most likely there are a few items in there that you don’t need (and are packaged in plastic)