By Steve Davies, Healthy Planet Columnist
There’s nothing like waiting till the last minute to do something but that’s what I did today. I finally went to our two local grocery stores here in town to ask them why they don’t carry any food in bulk these days. What I found surprised me a bit and gave me at least a little hope for the future.
The first store said what I thought they would both say, that they hadn’t bulk food for a long time in part, because it was hard to keep those products both full and fresh. What they offer now is bulk food in containers, which in my mind, defeats the purpose of reducing and reusing. What the second store said made me smile. They said basically the same thing but then the person said that since I asked them, they would let their boss know I asked and maybe they’ll bring it back one day.
Then I went to one of the national chains here in town that does sell food in bulk to see exactly what they have. What I found was nuts, beans, rice, oats, some fruit and trail mix. What I also did was look at the containers they offer to use for those items in bulk. What I didn’t ask however, was if we could use our own containers. I guess when I start doing this, I will ask and let you know.
So where does this get us? The way I see it, it’s two-fold. First, you can use the same containers over and over or perhaps use one of your own. Either way, you’re going to use less plastic. What I also thought was perhaps the store will also buy less of these items, particularly those that come in plastic bags,
As I’ve said before, I wonder if there are other items that could come in bulk. Off the top of my head, what about powdered items that come as mixes. I’m thinking of items like pancake mix, mashed potatoes or even dry milk. I’m sure there are others that I haven’t thought of, though the next time I go to the grocery store, I definitely will look around.
Like I said last month, if we don’t ask about them, they certainly won’t sell them. They need to know there’s a demand for these items. After all, that’s what I was told today.
For questions about recycling contact me at thprecycler@yahoo.com