new challenge

We are officially in the middle of National Lunchbox Week so I have decided make this week's challenge about packed lunches. A standard lunchbox these days contains heaps of waste as every item tends to be individually wrapped from tetrapak juice cartons to plastic an foil wrapped bars. In fact, estimates show that each child generates nearly 70lbs of waste a year. Multiply that by the number of us eating packed lunches around the country every day and that's a lot of rubbish. But there is a way to change this and to pack delicious lunches that don't require any packaging. Enter Mrs Green of My Zero Waste and the US based WasteFreeLunches pioneers. I have ideas for a number of other ways that we can reduce our carbon footprint at lunchtime. Why not try one, two, or all of these over the next week to make your family's lunches a more virtuous version of their former self.

1) Switch to a reusable bottle and fill with cold water from the tap, or occasionally some locally grown juice or cordial. You can even make your own though I haven't found a way to do this yet without using sugar.

2) Ditch cling film, aluminium foil and waxed paper and instead get creative. Reuse the bags from inside cereal packs as sandwich bags. Use a yoghurt pot or margarine tub as a pot for pasta or rice salads. 

3) Choose fruit with its own natural wrapping that is unlikely to get damaged in a lunch box, like apples, pears and plums. Or knit some wrap! Squishable berries, grapes etc can be stored in a washable container. 

4) There have been warnings about hazardous levels of lead in children's vinyl lunchbags (the soft plasticy character type bags). Avoid these and opt for a tupperware box, ice cream carton or sturdy paper bag instead, which can be used again. I love the tiffin tins that some specialist stores sell - they make great lunchboxes. Alternatively check out these new Laptop Lunchboxes which provide all the containers, some with lids so extra packaging is not necessary.

5) Avoid individually wrapped items and opt for bulk items such as dried fruit, nuts and crisps. Decant a small amount into reusable pots each day for lunch. This helps to save money too, especially if you eschew things like those little children's snack bars and make your own. I'll post a recipe later.

So go forth and green up those lunchboxes! Let us know how you get on and please share ideas for greening up your lunchtime meals.