Restaurants are surviving mainly on takeout services due to the present COVID-19 pandemic. As the number of takeout orders from restaurants rises, so does the number of plastics that will inevitably wind up in the trash.
Hoping that these guidelines would help you to avoid waste on your next take-out if you opt for this type of lifestyle:
1. Remove Add-On Utensils Or Condiments If Unnecessary
When ordering over the phone or online, make sure to specify that cutlery, straws, and extras such as sauce packets are not included. It may appear little, but it has the potential to have a big influence on reducing the pollution in the ocean. You’d be better off utilizing the clean reusables you already have at home.
Food waste is still waste, and the main idea should be to minimize the wastes that ordering takeout is producing.
The majority of online ordering forms allow you to personalize your meal by adding or removing items. Instead of merely putting items in your cart, take a glance around and see if there’s anything you won’t eat. This may appear to be a little effort, but it helps the restaurant avoid food waste while also lowering costs. Online food shops offer an option where customers may opt not to request cutlery from the restaurant.
2. Bring Your To-Go Containers
Some restaurants may combine two plastic bags to support your food, especially if it is large and heavy. Bring your reusable bag, knead basket or Tupperware instead of asking for extra plastic or paper ones. By this, you’re helping not only the environment but also the store themselves not to buy more plastics because consumers have new ways to pack their takeout.
3. Minimize Your Order
Consider if you are truly hungry or if you are simply fascinated by the way the food was marketed or displayed on the menu.
It’s not a terrible idea to try new foods every now and then, but buying stuff you won’t finish can be harmful. It’s also a good idea to understand how to compost organic waste such as fruit peels. You can decrease food waste while also providing organic fertilizer for your plants in this manner.
4. Bring Your Own Containers
Bring Your Own Container (BYOC) is a new waste-reduction eco-trend that extends beyond bringing your bag to the grocery store. Customers are encouraged to supply their jars, bottles, or tubes under the BYOC idea.
Bring your containers and bags if you’re ordering takeout directly from a restaurant. Not only will this benefit the environment, but it will also benefit companies since material prices will be reduced due to a lower need for disposable containers.
Some shops even offer discounts for customers who bring their containers. Like Starbucks stores in the United States and the Philippines, now let customers bring their reusable cups again, despite a restriction in 2020 due to concerns about the spread of COVID-19.
5. Turn Your Trash Into Cash
Compost containers that are biodegradable rather than disposable. If a disposable container has a plastic lid, it should be recycled. And, of course, any food you aren’t going to consume should be finished, refrigerated, or composted.
After using your disposable food containers, segregate them properly and look for establishments or organizations that participate in recycling materials.
Being environmentally conscious while ordering takeout benefits, not just the environment, but also the businesses.
You can also put the segregated materials on your Local Government Unit’s designated locations for recyclable materials.
It will take hundreds of years for single-use plastic containers, bags, and straws to disintegrate. You’ll be long gone before the fork you used to eat your salad for lunch decomposes completely on the Earth’s surface.
Whether you run a restaurant or consume at one, being aware of sustainable takeaway options may help you decrease waste.
