Jen heads over to Whole Foods once a week to pick up some goodies for our vegetarian diets. I’ve noticed that nearly all of the food containers used in their deli and other areas are made from plastic #5, which is almost universally non-recyclable. I wondered why a company with such a green focus would do this, so I shot them an email and asked. 6 days later I got my answer (I added the link):
Thank you for taking the time to write to Whole Foods Market with your feedback about the packaging of prepared foods.
We do realize the importance of this issue, and we are continually and actively seeking a supplier that can provide cost-effective, sturdy, and reliable food containers that are able to be recycled. Once we do find containers that meet our qualifications, we will incrementally introduce them throughout the company. In addition, we have begun to test other alternative packaging materials, including bagasse, which is made from biodegradable sugar cane pulp. Takeout containers in many of our stores are made from this material, and we are actively looking for other alternatives to replace packaging materials in our stores with greener materials.
In the meantime, please recycle the packaging as you are able in your community.
That’s about what I expected. As Justin will tell you, #5 plastics are better for you anyway. But I’d still like to see a brand like this lead the charge for change.
7 Responses to “Whole Foods Using Non-Recyclables”
- 1 Pingback on Mar 6th, 2008 at 1:16 am
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It would nice to see #5′s and other materials more readily recyclable. A recent “immigrant” from rural Wisconsin, it’s hard for me to understand to low rate of reculing and recycleables here in the Charleston area. The small town of 15,000 people had the ability to recycle all materials except #6 (styrofoam) and it saved the city/taxpayers a bundle every year of landfills. I suspect the differences are in scale or in the costs being payed to landfill being more in WI vs SC.
Perhaps working on both fronts is a better option, pressing Whole Foods and pressing our elected representatives.
Thanks for sharing D. That’s great that your small town was so progressive – do you have a link for the program or local government? It’s still pretty rare to find a program that takes plastics 3-7, and I’d love to call them up and see how they did it.
I wonder if they could do it simply because they were small. Scale seems to add problems like incorrect use of the drop sites. Just yesterday I saw a huge plastic crate stuffed with old hoses, mops, and garbage left in the parking lot off of Whipple Road. What are people thinking?…these sites aren’t open air garbage cans!
The good news is that we’ve heard from both Charleston and Dorchester counties that plans are in the works to recycle more plastic. I honestly believe that curbside pickup of corrugated cardboard would make a bigger impact, but I’ll take what I can get!
Why does Whole Foods have to use any throw away material, recyclable or not, for it’s deli? Other “Earth Friendly” grocers in the area use washable plates, glasses and utensils and recyclable material in the containers for food “to go” from their deli.
My last visit to the Whole Foods deli I noticed that they had a sign on the recycling container that said “do not throw items that contain food”. I mean come on….
Why can I not use my own storage type containers for take out there and other places?
People should get a credit for attempting to save the earth rather than be told that they cannot tare the weight of home brought containers or the containers are not sterile…I mean it is a container that I am taking home to eat the food in. Why should they care if it is sterile or not?
Earth Fare lets me bring in my own containers for their soup.
May Whole Foods should get with Earth Fare’s program.
Does Whole Foods allow containers we bring in, and do they reduce the “tare weight”?
I’m more concerned about the bulk foods I want to buy than take-out. I’m just not sure how to go about getting the tare weight.. do you use this option?
Thanks, ~Heidi
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