Yesterday was Halloween, which means somewhere around 41 million people went to people's homes, businesses, and events where they were given (most likely) candy. Halloween is fun. Halloween is so much fun, and it allows people to be creative and daring as they dress up in costumes or outfits that make them feel confident. Not only that, but you get great candy and have traditions like carving pumpkins and drinking cider. Fall is a great time of the year, and Halloween is part of that. But let's talk about the scariest part of Halloween. No it's not going to the dentist with your rotten teeth, or a two year old hyped up on candy and awake at 10pm. It's the packaging of the candy you receive; it's plastic. Companies use plastic as packaging because it's easy to print on, it's easy to mold into whatever shape the product is, and more. I guess it might be cheaper, but I can't find any good source on that. Anyways, they use plastic as packaging for most candy. And if they have a mainly paper packaging (like some Sour Patch Kids boxes), they have a plastic bag inside (like some Sour Patch Kids boxes). There are, of course, exceptions, just like any other statistic. Nerds, Dots, Junior Mints, Hard Sweetarts, Mike and Ike's, etc. They have achieved being able to sell candy without including any plastic. And it's time for other candies to have paper packaging too. So much plastic goes into our oceans, most of it from MILES INLAND. Yes, the Reese's wrapper you ate from last night might end up in the sea even though you live 100 miles from it. Our plastic travels distances, and also ends up in our landfills. It tries to break down, and when it finally does, it becomes a microplastic, which arguably is even more harmful because it gets everywhere. Fun fact, they've found microplastics in human poop. So it's up to us. We as consumers need to push companies to have more responsible packaging. They need to consider that their packaging is having a big impact on the environment. If we contact those companies, and only buy candy that doesn't come with plastic, we can steer them in the right direction. Maybe by next year more candies will have plastic-free packaging, or more places will be giving out candies that don't have plastic. You could be the really cool house that gives out canned sodas. But for now, I'll just be munching on Nerds whenever the opportunity arises, and I hope you will be more conscious about the packaging of the products you buy.
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December 2018
Ally
Just looking out for the Earth and everyone who lives on it. |