6 Easy Ways To Use Less Plastic

I am all about harnessing the power of baby steps; small actions can stack up to make a big difference! Right now I’m particularly tuned to how to reduce the use of plastics (especially single-use) so today, in partnership with eco-friendly home goods purveyor Full Circle, I wanted to share my favorite easy (I promise!) ways to make swaps to use less plastic.

1. Sponges

I suspect many people don’t think plastic when they think about sponges, but it is, in fact, the case that about 400 million sponges are thrown away in the United States each year, the majority being plastic that will take centuries to break down. So one super easy swap you can make is to opt for a natural cellulose sponge instead of a plastic one. To that effect, Full Circle recently launched their #StartWithASponge campaign, through which they’re asking people to pledge to swap a plastic cleaning sponge for a natural cellulose cleaning sponge, which is plant-based and equally hard-working! Will you please hop over and pledge to #StartWithASponge? Full Circle has several sponge options, as well as these cellulose sponge cloths, which are awesome for reducing paper towel waste.

Swap your plastic sponges for a cellulose sponge! #StartWithASponge

2. Shopping bags

There really is no need for plastic shopping bags anymore! I keep a stash of reusable bags in my car for big grocery store runs and also keep one bag folded up in my purse for when I’m doing errands on foot. When I next need to refresh my bag stash I’m going with these amazing animal bags. I’m pretty sure I’ll love grocery store runs more if I’ve got cute animals with me!

3. Produce bags

While you’re getting your shopping bags sorted, easily level up your plastic reduction with reusable produce bags.

4. Lunch making supplies

Disposable school lunch supplies create a ton of waste but it’s super easy to curb that tide! As I shared in this post on 6 steps to not making your kid’s school lunch anymore, I love Full Circle’s ziptuck reusable storage bags, which also come in a bunch of cute patterns for kids. We use these bags every day for lunch and snacks.

Full Circle’s ziptuck reusable storage bags are great for lunch and snacks

5. Stainless steel

I’m a huge fan of stainless steel; easy to clean and sturdy! We use stainless steel snack bowls and reusable water bottles. I especially love the water bottles because there’s no gross scum to clean out of plastic/rubber parts!

6. Food storage

I mentioned this in my post on eco-friendly kitchen survival but it warrants repeat mention: Using glass for food storage is an easy, high impact swap that will also save you time and water (reheat in the same storage container and pop in dishwasher when done; hooray for less dishes!). We rarely use plastic wrap but I’m thinking my goal for 2020 is to finish the roll of plastic wrap that’s kicking around in our pantry and swap to using beeswax wraps when the need arises.

And if it’s easier for you to watch than read, here’s a video version of the key points in this post!

Disclosure: This post reflects a compensated editorial partnership with Full Circle, purveyor of amazing eco-friendly home care products. I fell in love with their products earlier this year and my family legit cannot believe how much more I’ve become invested in sweeping and composting as a result.