It comes as no surprise that plastic seems to be everywhere you turn and it also feels like it's becoming almost impossible to avoid it. From takeaway cutlery, to cosmetics and general packaging you're sure to handle some type of plastic throughout your daily life.
So what are some easy swaps you can make to ditch the plastic and start your plastic free journey, especially while you travel?
Here are 5 of our favourite sustainable and plastic free options we recommend for travel that are affordable, unique and better for our planet than their plastic counter parts.
This post may contain affiliate links and as an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases. I will only recommend products I either personally love or have used!
1. Reusable silicone coffee lids.
Did you know that most takeaway coffee lids aren't recyclable and can take up to 450 years to 'break down'? No? Neither did we. So once we found out, we made the swap to a really cool new Australian product called Lydy. Lydy silicone reusable coffee lids will fit most takeaway coffee cups, as well as glass and ceramic cups you would already have in your home. They come in a cool silicone carry pouch which is easy to clean and fits in your bag or around your wrist.
2. Bamboo Chopping boards.
I stumbled across a reel on instagram yesterday by chef Guy Turland which showed him pretending to chop and slice food on a plastic chopping board. As he chopped and sliced, tiny fragments of plastic began to build up along the blade of his knife. He then slid his finger across the blade and proceeded to explain how many micro plastics we consume each year just by using plastic chopping boards to prepare our food. The answer is between 14-71 million micro plastic fragments annually! (Mind blown!)
Plastic isn't tasty so you can eliminate unnecessary plastics and related toxins by simply swapping to a bamboo chopping board.
You're welcome.
3. Beeswax wraps.
Beeswax wraps have been around for quite a while and over time i've tried and tested quite a few. They're a great replacement for traditional plastic wrap you generally find at your local grocery store. Standard plastic wrap products can take anywhere from ten to hundreds of years to break down, whereas beeswax wraps can be ripped apart once they've reached the end of their life and placed in your green home compost bin. How cool is that?
A brand I’m really loving at the moment is Api Wraps Beeswax Wraps. They're locally made in my home town of Adelaide and the fabrics used are bold and colourful, just how I like them!
4. Stainless steel or bamboo reusable straws.
At this point, it’s pretty obvious that plastic straws suck (pardon the pun). If you're going to sip, you may as well sip sustainability, right?
My favourite sustainable straws are by an Australian company called Zenify.
5. Swedish dish cloths.
The standard house hold spends upward of $260 per year on paper towels. Since paper towels are a single use item, you're literally throwing your money away.
Swedish dish cloths are estimated to save around 17 rolls of paper towel which means not only are they kinder on your pocket, but also much kinder on the planet. Dish cloths can replace house hold sponges, paper towels, and other cloths you may use to clean up crumbs or spills around your home or camper.
You can find them in a variety of really cool vibrant colours and patterns or even in neutral tones to suit your home. They're also dishwasher safe and biodegradable.
Let us know how you love to travel plastic free and what products you reccommend.
Safe travels xx
