When you first start trying to move towards a plastic-free kitchen, it can seem challenging. Maybe you don’t have access to a bulk food store so you end up with more plastic food packaging than you’d like. We don’t have a bulk food store where we live, but we still manage to keep our kitchen low-waste.
By focusing on what we CAN do instead of what we have no control of, we can drastically reduce the amount of waste that comes out of our kitchen. If you’re looking for tips on reducing plastic packaging while shopping at a regular grocery store, check out this article I wrote awhile back.
Let’s focus on the items in your kitchen that you can swap for eco-friendly alternatives, no matter where you live! I’ve chosen 5 of the easiest swaps that you can immediately switch out to cut back on plastic. It’ll be a hassle-free switch and you won’t even miss your old plastic version. If anything, you’ll regret not doing it sooner! Trust me on this one. Without further ado, here are my 5 favorite zero waste swaps to help you move towards a plastic-free kitchen!
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1. Glass Snapware
I usually recommend waiting until a product is used up before replacing it. However, your plastic Tupperware should be replaced with glass immediately for so many reasons:
- No more health concerns for micro-plastics leaching into your food (especially if you’re microwaving them)
- Reduces food waste because you can always see your leftovers
- Super easy to freeze any kind of food in glass snapware
To maximize the remaining life in your plastic Tupperware, use it for storage/organizing around the house, give away leftover food to guests in it after your next party, or donate it to a local thrift store. This ensures it will still get some use out of it before its life cycle is up.
The brand we love and use in our home is this Glasslock set. We’ve had them for six months now and never have seen a crack or chip in one. Yes, the lids are plastic, but we’ve never had to replace any and they’re holding up great. I especially love these containers for freezing leftover soups and lasagna in!
Side note: glass jars are also great for food storage. Soak jars in a bowl of hot water for several hours to get the labels off, then use them. You won’t have to buy mason jars ever again if you do this! There are so many ways to use glass jars around your house–check out this article for more creative ways you can save those glass jars from the recycling bin and use them instead!
2. Beeswax Wraps
Swap that single-use saran wrap for reusable beeswax wraps. They are organic and compostable, so you can snip them up and add them to your compost pile when they’re used up (they should last about a year).
Beeswax wraps can be used in SO many different ways. I just recently started using them and I can’t believe I was missing out until now. Here are a few ideas for different ways to use your beeswax wraps:
- To cover bowls in the refrigerator
- To cover a dish you’re taking to a friend’s house
- To cover the tops of mason jars (because I always lose my lids)
- To wrap a sandwich in for your lunch
- To take your loaf of bread home from the bakery
- To wrap cheese in
- To wrap half an onion, lemon, apple, etc. in
- To wrap your homemade bread in
I’m sure there are plenty of other ways that haven’t crossed my mind! This is my newest zero-waste addition and I couldn’t be more excited. I use these beeswax wraps in my kitchen (+10 points for having a cute sea turtle design)!
3. “Unpaper” Towels
Paper towels are such an easy thing to replace in your plastic-free kitchen. They typically come wrapped in plastic, not to mention all of the trees being cut down to make the roll itself. There are lots of unpaper towels on the market, but the ones I recommend are these organic cotton ones from Marley’s Monsters. I try to use organic everything whenever possible! Keep a small bin under the kitchen sinks and toss the unpaper towels in as they get dirty.
Another option is to DIY your own. Buy some cute cotton flannel from your local fabric store, cut it into rectangles and hem it around the edges so it doesn’t fray. Skip the hemming part if you don’t have a sewing machine! You can also repurpose old t-shirts into kitchen rags. Although we have a roll of unpaper towels on our counter, we also have a drawer with some rags in the bottom for the extra gross and messy spills.
4. Dish brush from plant fiber
After trying a few different natural dish brushes, I’ve found my favorite type of fiber! It works just as well as any other scouring pad (much better than a plastic sponge) and it’s made from coconut fibers! How cool is that?! The plant nerd in me goes a little crazy for these!
I’m able to buy mine locally in Japanese grocery stores (they’re called Tawashi brushes here). If you aren’t able to find any locally, you can buy them online right here from my favorite eco-store, Earth Hero! Earth Hero always ships plastic-free AND they participate in carbon-offsetting, so they have my vote all day, every day.
5. Soap bars
Growing up with a mom who made soap regularly, I’m no stranger to using soap bars all around the house. You’d be surprised how versatile a bar of soap is! Our family uses them for hand-washing soap, body wash, and for dish washing. Bar soap gets the same endorsement from the CDC that liquid soap does. And guess what? Antibacterial soap is no more effective than regular soap and water for killing disease-causing germs. Yup, that’s right!
These Dr. Bronner’s soap bars are my all-time favorite. They cut through grease extremely well and are super affordable too. I get an assorted pack so I can have all the various scents. That way I can use different smells for different tasks (peppermint for dishwashing, lavender for body wash)!
Plastic-free kitchen, coming right up!
We are at a point where we can’t afford to keep using single-use plastic in our daily lives. Our planet can’t afford it. Although sometimes plastic may be unavoidable, focus on what you can change in your life. Think of how much of a difference you can make in the world by transforming your kitchen into a plastic-free kitchen.
Tell your friends about your new beeswax wraps when you wrap your potluck dish with them. Start conversations with your family and in your community about the changes we can make to make this world a better place. Let’s save our planet together.
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