Plastics I Refuse to Give Up – Reflection on PFJ

Hey earth muffins! Plastic Free July has come and gone, and I’d definitely say that I achieved my goals of producing as little plastic waste as possible. 😊 Now that I have had about half a month to reflect on the plastic free challenge, I thought it would be an interesting post to share some of the plastics in my life that I will NOT be giving up on my journey towards living zero/low waste (at least as of now). As I mentioned in my Misconceptions About Living Zero Waste post, many people still produce some sort of waste and that is totally okay! So, here are the plastics that I personally refuse to give up at the moment…

1. Face wash – As I mentioned in My Zero Waste Successes and Failures post, I had been using Proactiv to control my sensitive skin in the past. I have since switched off of it after it literally bleached my shirt, and my skin is now on a huge detox adventure which is just great. 🙄 I am now using Lush’s Herbalism as face wash, which does come in a plastic tub. However, the tubs are made from recycled plastic and can be returned to the store, so I don’t think it is that terrible to refuse to give up this cleanser.

2. Milk – I was so excited that I was able to find milk in glass for Plastic Free July, but as you all saw in my Plant Based Grocery Haul it was $5 for a half gallon!! For a graduate student on a tight budget, that is pretty unreasonable when you can get a full gallon for $1-2… So I plan on switching to milk in jugs (or almond/coconut milk in containers). Hopefully the city I live in will eventually get cheaper milk in glass!

3. Greek yogurt – When I first started becoming interested in sustainability last summer, I read a bunch of zero waste books. Many of them contained recipes to make your own yogurt… But I just don’t have the time for that right now. Greek yogurt is a huge staple for me, so I buy it in the largest size possible and then recycle when it is empty. Maybe some day I’ll learn how to make it myself. 🤷‍♀️

4. Toothpaste – While I absolutely LOVE my Tough Teeth Tooth Powder from Primal Pit Paste, I can’t seem to justify the $11 + shipping cost now that I am going back to school. ☹️ I will definitely be switching back in the future though, and Primal Pit Paste products are still some of my faves!

5. Birth control – If you have been following Life of an Earth Muffin for a long time, you know that I use the Basal Body Temperature and Cervical Mucus Methods as natural birth control. While these methods eliminate the need for plastic pill containers, I will still never give up other forms of birth control (ex. condoms) when I decide to become sexually active. It seems like a little plastic waste is totally okay if you are trying to prevent a baby (which comes with even more plastic waste!)…

What plastic waste do you refuse to give up??

Love,
Jenna ♥

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Comments

  1. I think that this list is totally justifiable. Certain lifestyles seem more attainable for people with lots of money and lots of free time so they can buy the expensive things and make all their own foods and such. As long as we do what we can within our limits, I feel that it is good enough.

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