One of the best ways to reduce waste is to bring your own clean reusable containers to stores. This post expands on my previous one No More Disposable Plastic! Some places like farmers markets, butchers, Whole Foods , Sprouts, Zanotto's, and Starbucks understand the value of reusable containers (saves both them and you money, reduces waste, helps environment) but others do not yet. If we all keep pushing, this will become increasingly accepted. While cardboard ice cream containers are compostable in some municipal composting programs (but not in home composting), composting them is still more waste than using a reusable container. Plus the cardboard ice cream containers do have some plastic in them. I am currently waiting for responses from Baskin Robbins and Cold Stone Creamery to see if they will allow me to bring my own quart containers to their stores to get fresh packed ice cream. Cold Stone also makes its ice cream ...
We are all consumers by necessity (to live is to consume). As a consumer, here are the best economical, ethical, and ecological practices and products that I've been able to find.