Pitch the Plastic Forks
Guess how many plastic utensils are used every day in the U.S.
Seriously, just guess.
Now raise your guess a little. Maybe a little more.
The answer?
100 million.
That’s one plastic spoon, fork, or knife for every three people, EVERY SINGLE DAY.
And the extra sad thing: so many of them are never even used! We see a lot of utensils come in to TerraCycle that are still in the plastic wrapper.
Fortunately, we can easily stop this madness! Here's what to do:
- Keep your own set of utensils in your car, in your bag, and at work.
- If you order takeout, ask for no utensils. If they give you utensils, politely give them back. (We think it's helpful to say something, but if that make you nervous, you can quietly leave them on the counter or pull a Robert and sneak them back into the restaurant the next time you're there.) If you're tight with the management, encourage them to only offer utensils upon request—or to switch to compostable utensils if they really want to provide them.
- If you're at an event and forgot to bring utensils, think about whether you really need them. Maybe you only need one. Maybe you can eat with your hands. Maybe you can using your chips as spoons. Ask the host if you can borrow a real utensil if you wash it. Use your creativity to avoid disposables!
- Tell your elected officials you support a policy like Chicago's single-use foodware ordinance, which requires that food businesses provide single-use foodware only upon request from the customer (or at a self-service station). We think this is an incredibly reasonable approach that doesn't prevent anyone from getting the plastic they want, while helping all of us avoid the plastic we don't!
- If, despite all of these tricks, you end up with wrapped plastic silverware, put them in a Blessing Box or give them to an organization that can get them to homeless people who could benefit from clean utensils.
What other suggestions do you have? Let us know so we can share your ideas with others!
-Justine
