A little over a year ago, I saw a piece on the internet about  a 16-year-old girl who had made it her mission to have her school become a waste-free lunch site.  I was so awed by this and inspired by her vision that I began my own personal journey of waste-free lunches for my daughter who has been in preschool part-time for the past 3 years. (Unfortunately, I cannot find the link, not the story to give credit where credit is due, but if anyone knows who I am talking about, please let me know!)

I am amazed at how my decision to do this actually changed some of my shopping habits.  Although I haven’t completely forsaken single serve items – I still buy individual string cheese and fruit leather, for example, but a lot of the individual packaged goods have gone by the wayside.  No more juice boxes, no more individual bags of chips or snacks, and no more plastic baggies!!  So this is turning out to be good for my wallet as well as good for the earth!  For a simple definition of waste-free check Global Stewards.

Wastefreelunches.org gives this sad news: “It has been estimated that on average a school-age child using a disposable lunch generates 67 pounds of waste per school year. That equates to 18,760 pounds of lunch waste for just one average-size elementary school.”   This site also has some great tips on easy to pack, healthy foods.

I just stocked up on some re-usable products for Lily to go off to kindergarten with. We got her a new lunch box from recycled materials and a couple of cool new “sandwich skins.”  I chose to purchase from ReUseIt.com (http://www.reuseit.com/learn-more/buying-guides/5-steps-to-a-waste-free-lunch) where they also give some great tips on going waste-free.

I sometimes worry that I push this earth-friendly stance on Lily too much.  I wonder, is it too much for a 5-year-old to endure?  So I asked Lily if other kids were also doing waste-free lunches and she couldn’t think of any in her class. So I asked if she minded having all her stuff packed in reusable containers and she said she was okay with it, and then she added,  “it’s good because we’re not wasting paper.”

Well, that’s the truth, and if she’s OK with it, then so am I!

Stay Playful,

Karen