Reducing my use of cling-wrap
Food Kozy wrapper from Kids Konserve
For my birthday, I was given some neat little reusable lunch wraps (thanks, Wendy!). I’ve been using them for the last few weeks and am pretty happy with them.
The ones I’ve got are from Kids Konserve, and I like them a lot. They’re flat plastic wrappers in an round-ish shape, with a velcro closure. The idea is to use them instead of cling-wrap for sandwiches and small snacks.
I usually have leftovers for lunch each day, because I’m not capable of organising even a sandwich before I’ve been awake for a while and had my coffee. But I’ve been using these to wrap up the homemade muffins and biscuits that I take as snacks. Previously I’d tried little Tupperware containers, but they let too much air in with the food.
The wraps work really well – I thought that maybe the uneven shape of the muffins would mean prevent the wrappers from making an airtight container. But the size of the wrapper means that it’s all sealed up well, no problems.
The other bonus is that they’re really easy to clean. Most days I just wipe them off, but when I’ve had something sticky in there I just wash them in with the other dishes. They’re BPA-free and recycleable as well, which is always nice.
Cling-wrap is one of those disposable things I’ve been bugged by for a long time. I’ve still got some, but I’m using a lot less these days. Eventually I hope to find other ways to replace it with other solutions – if you’ve got any good tips I’d love to hear them!
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Simple… just don’t buy it, then you can’t use it! We’ve been gladwrap free for a couple of years now, though we get the occasional bit wrapped around our delivered organic produce… argh!
You can also buy snack bags, from the same companies that do the various ‘wraps’ too.
Try some Pyrex containers with lids, for storing in the fridge, as well as cooking in. Yes, that still uses resources but they last a LONG time. Also good for taking lunch to work, though a little heavier to carry. (Label them well, so no one will steal them!!) You can get old-style (ie. the good stuff!) Pyrex at op shops/ markets and garage sales. There are other brands too.
Other storage ideas include reusing glass jars and lids. Or buying good quality, ‘safe’ long lasting plastic containers, that can be put into the freezer, or fridge.
If you have leftovers, put them in the bowl/ plate you’ll eat them from the next day, and turn another plate or bowl upside down on top of it. Wrap a teatowel around it, if it is odorous food you don’t want to seep into your other fridge food.
Rhonda at Down to Earth has some good ideas on her blog too, I believe.
Good luck Julie, you can do it!
Those are some good tips. We’ve got one roll of cling-wrap lingering on – since we don’t use it often, it’s taking forever to get rid of it! I like the idea of using plates as covers, I already do that for the microwave but hadn’t considered it for the fridge.
What is in the lining of the Food Kozy wraps? For example, there will be some kind of coating that keeps the sandwich or wrap fresh? Is that coating biodegradable?
Julie
There’s no lining, just the one piece of material. The freshness just comes from the food being sealed in, like it would be with cling-wrap. They’re BP-A free, you can see more info on their frequently asked questions page. From what I see there, the wraps aren’t biodegradeable (and you’d probably want a reusable item to last for ages rather than break down over time), but they are recycleable since they’re a #4 type of plastic.