Packaging

Packaging is essential is today's consumer-driven world, but I think the industry has gone a bit overboard, don't you?Anytime I buy something packaged in hard plastic, I spend the rest of the day trying to open the stupid thing. And then, all that packaging, made from non-renewable fossil fuels, goes right into the trash.
1/3 of the waste in US landfills is packaging waste. In 2007, Americans threw away 78.5 Million Tons of packaging... that equates to about 520 pounds per person in just one year! Yikes! Plus, more packaging means higher costs for you- approximately 10% of the cost of an item is due to packaging.
So, what can you do? Here's just a few ideas:
-Buy less! Do you really need it?
-Buy in bulk. Yes, that is completely contradictory to my last suggestion, but if you are going to need a lot of something, like flour, why not buy in bulk and use less resources.
-Buy used items which don't have any additional packaging.
-Choose items with the least packaging possible (hello Trader Joe's produce section... cool it on the plastic, people).
-Save packaging that is reusable (like bubble wrap and styrofoam peanuts) and use it again- at least give these items a long life before they hit the landfill.