While plastic pollution is a major global issue, it's difficult for businesses and consumers to avoid it entirely until sustainable alternatives become mainstream. Some products may even be wrapped in multiple layers of plastic for no apparent reason, as one dismayed Reddit user discovered.
What's happening?
An employee at a major global pizza chain posted a photo of their restaurant's excessive plastic waste to the r/Anticonsumption subreddit.
"The amount of waste made for some cheese at unnamed global pizza company," they said in the post. The image following showed a mountain of plastic in a box next to unwrapped cheese.
The OP detailed the egregious example of unnecessary packaging, writing, "4 [individually] wrapped packets of camembert, that is wrapped in plastic, inside of a plastic tub, with a plastic seal, in a small cardboard box. All for us to unwrap them, cut them up [and] put them into a container."
"Restaurants are extremely wasteful. Normal ones have portion bags that most products for service get put in, which all end up in the garbage - not recycling. I have worked in them for 15 years and it always makes me sad to see all the food and plastic waste…" one commenter shared.
Another expressed mixed feelings about the situation, writing, "This is part food safety, part food supply chain and part waste. I agree that the cheeses being both wrapped and then sealed inside a container is over the top and pure waste."
No matter the reason, it seems like more could've been done to limit the amount of plastic waste, especially when the OP stated that other products shipped to the restaurant have much less packaging.
Why is plastic waste concerning?
Even though plastic may be necessary for some products, it has a profoundly negative environmental impact.
Tiny plastic particles known as microplastics are found virtually everywhere on the planet, disrupting ecosystems and polluting the environment for hundreds or thousands of years until they break down.
Furthermore, it's estimated that around 100,000 marine animals and one million seabirds die each year from ingesting or becoming entangled in plastic, per Earth.org.
In addition to all these dire issues, plastic contributes greatly to the planet's overheating throughout its lifecycle and requires dirty fuels like oil to produce.
Are pizza companies doing anything about this?
Since the OP didn't say where they work, it's unknown what their company is doing to mitigate plastic waste or commit to other sustainability objectives.
Meanwhile, national pizza chains like Pizza Hut and Domino's are working to reduce their environmental impact by lowering pollution and water use across their supply chains and transitioning to more sustainable materials like recycled fibers for pizza boxes.
What's being done about plastic waste more broadly?
The multinational food giant Mars is testing new sustainable packaging ideas that could eliminate nearly 250 tons of plastic waste. McDonald's stores across the UK and Ireland switched to paper cutlery last year, which it says will save 850 tons of plastic from its supply chain annually.
Consumers can do their part by exploring plastic-free alternatives for everyday products, supporting eco-friendly companies, and ditching disposable water bottles and grocery bags.
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