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Let me start with a few staggering statistics so you understand the impact going green at lunch can have on our planet.

• The Container Recycling Institute claims that 2.81 million juice boxes were sold in the U.S. in 2006, most of which cannot be recycled due to the inseparability of the cardboard, plastic, and aluminum foil used in the product.
• The average American school-age child throws away 67 pounds of lunch waste a year. With the population of kids in the US alone accounting for over 70 million, that’s over 4.6 billion pounds of waste that could be easily avoided.
• Plastic cutlery is non-biodegradable, can leach toxic chemicals when handled improperly, and is widely used. Worldcentric.org estimates 40 billion plastic utensils are used every year in just the United States. The majority of these are thrown out after just one use.

Read more facts about disposable lunches here on reuseit.com.

Are you as shocked as I was after reading this? And you think I would be used to hearing these kinds of numbers bandied about, but no, my mouth still drops in surprise. So let’s jump right to a simple solution to this problem. Bring your own lunch containers. Wow – that’s it?

There are so many fun, cool options these days that there’s no excuse. Check these out:

I have been using these Kids Konserve sandwich wrappers and stainless steel containers for a few years since a friend gave them to me as a gift. All these products are free of BPA, phthalates, PVC and lead. My daughter uses them everyday at school now too. Gotta start ‘em early! I really like the whole set. (Is it me or is that a hec of a lot of nuts to eat for lunch? Just saying.)

This Acme Bags lunch bag made me laugh. A take on the “I’m not a plastic bag” bag that was so hot a few years ago. The benefit of this bag is that it is made from recycled cotton and polyester, printed with PVC-free ink and made in the USA. Delicious!

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