As a mom, I'm pretty eco-responsible. I buy organic. I carpool. I compost. And I'd be delighted to never see another Ziploc bag in my life, except ... how else am I supposed to pack my kids' lunches?
It's a space problem: Reusable containers are so rigid, so maddeningly unbendy, that you just can't cram more than one or two into a lunchbox. So I wind up swallowing my petroleum-and-landfill guilt every morning as I toss some baby carrots or pretzel sticks -- gulp -- into a plastic baggie and watch it slither, slide and settle, cooperatively, between the bulkier contents of the lunchbox.
But here's another space problem: An average kid using disposable lunch wrappers generates 67 pounds of waste per school year. Where on earth will it all go?
Moms Tammy Pelstring and Amy Hemmert came up with a better way. They invented the Laptop Lunch Box, a compact container that brilliantly holds five smaller containers of various sizes and colors. Modeled after Japanese Bento boxes, the snap-shut lunch box is made of lead-free, microwave-safe plastic and comes with stainless steel utensils. The company says it uses fair-labor practices and donates a portion of proceeds to schools and environmental groups. (It's $33.95 and comes with a carrying sleeve.)
Another solution: Wrap sandwiches, burritos or veggie sticks in the Wrap-N-Mat, a 13"-by-13" folding mat made of food-safe vinyl that doubles as a placemat when opened. The mats can be used hundreds of times and hand-washed or run through a washing machine. (It's $6.95 and you can choose from four colors.)
If you still need to wrap food in disposable stuff, consider Natural Value's unbleached, waxed paper bags. Non-toxic and compostable, die-hard users say you can rinse and reuse a few times before they fall apart. (They're $2.95 for 60.)
