At first, the sight of a green plastic Parmesan lid on a smoothie is a bit jarring — no pun intended — but the longer one person considered it, the more it made sense.
They posted a photo of the odd contraption on Reddit, explaining, "my co-worker uses a parmesan cheese shaker lid as a cover for her mason jar smoothies."
In the picture, a reusable metal straw sits perfectly in one of the large holes in the lid.
"Weird but effective," one person said.
Most people had similar reactions — first confusion or aversion, and then respect.
"No way," one person enthused. "This is awesome." Another agreed, calling it "quite clever."
"You've got the gulp side and the straw side," one pointed out. "What's not to love?"
Due to universal sizing on many jars and containers, this type of lid-swapping hack can work across a number of containers. For example, several people have posted similar pictures and videos explaining how they upcycle Parmesan lids with Mason jars to hold everything from spice mixes to single-portion creamers and syrups.
The reasons for these are multifold. "Definitely screams the frugal type," one person hypothesized. Another commenter replied, "Or just…someone who doesn't want to create excess plastic waste."
Indeed, choosing to upcycle and repurpose your containers — from Parmesan jars to candle holders — is a great way to keep items from clogging landfills, where they emit planet-warming gases as they break down over time.
This is particularly important as the amount of waste generated by individuals continues to soar. According to Environment America, the average American produces nearly 5 pounds of trash per day, which accumulates in landfills and often makes its way into rivers and oceans as well. Therefore, choosing to repurpose or upcycle everything from jars to clothing is an excellent way to reduce those numbers on a personal level.
And in addition to the environmental benefits, finding new and creative ways to repurpose existing items is simply satisfying for any DIY and money-saving types. Just ask the people who plant gardens out of toilet paper tubes or help wild animals to relax with old mascara brushes.
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