Why Should We Care about Packaging? Everything you need to know

A little bit about our intern and guest writer - Jenna D’Ascoli

I am Jenna, a sustainability intern here at Circular Bodies. I just recently graduated with a BA in environmental studies, and am happy to share some knowledge with this community!

I often find myself wondering : why does almost everything I own come in plastic? What does the number in the middle of the recycling symbol mean? What is the impact of plastic on our planet and all that lives on it? In this post I am going to be sharing the cons to using plastic and how Circular Bodies tries as best we can to keep the earth healthy! 

Healthy Ingredients + Plastic Packaging ≠ Sustainability

I find it difficult to get behind a product that claims to be sustainable and cares about the planet yet continues to find use within plastics. There are so many alternatives to single-use plastic that get the job done, whether it be glass or compostable packaging. We should be going the extra mile for the earth, just like she does for us. 

Plastics heavily pollute soil and oceans, according to the center for biological diversity “billions of pounds of plastic can be found in swirling convergences that make up about 40% of the world's ocean surfaces. At current rates plastic is expected to outweigh all the fish in the sea by 2050.” We need to make conscious efforts to protect the oceans, if not for aquatic life then let it be because it directly affects us humans. Plastics have the ability to turn into microplastics where aquatic life mistakes the plastic for food. We humans then eat different marine animals and too ingest plastics. The usage of plastics is not good for both wildlife (whether they be on land or sea) or human health long-term. 

                                               Microplastics, Fish & Humans

Some Eco-Friendly Alternatives to Plastic :

1. Glass

 2. Paper & Cardboard 

 3. Beeswax wrap

 

 5. Bamboo

 6. Metal Caps for Reusing Bottles

How Circular Bodies does their part : A brief glimpse

Take a look at some of our Circularity practices! We have a take back program, which is the reduce and reuse part of the infamous reduce, reuse and recycle saying. The take back program is where you accumulate 4+ of our glass bottles and you want to send them back to us for reuse! When you have your glass bottles ready, you send us an email at hello@circularbodies.com with an address and a shipping label will be sent to you. These are just a few simple easy steps to help with the reduction of materials in circulation and help save and reuse perfectly good containers! Not to mention you won’t be scratching your head wondering if any of our containers are recyclable in your state.                          

Recycled Plastic 

Recycling plastics is a complex process that varies in the US from state to state and city to city. The fact is, what is designated for recycling does not always get recycled. Plastics can be put in the wrong bins or certain plastics do not get processed in your state. A lot of what is not recycled is either thrown into a landfill where it sits for the next few hundred years or it is incinerated - both processes are known to emit toxic emissions. 

In the end, plastic will not biodegrade, every piece of plastic ever made is still in existence! So creating more plastic or recycling measures incentivizes plastic use and improper disposal of plastic. The risks of improper disposal of plastic and the energy intensive and toxic processes that go into creating recycled plastic is not worth it. Why not use the alternatives?!

Circular Bodies Packaging