Hi guys, It's Frugal Fani. Did #plasticfreejuly sneak up on you? Do you need help determining which single-use plastics are okay to reuse and which should go right in the recycle bin? I did some research and have some facts to share with you that may help you to reuse or recycle the plastic that is hiding in your kitchen cabinets. First, plastics are assigned numbers based on their components. You can find the plastic number inside the triangle-shaped recycle symbol - usually found on the bottom of plastic packaging. The number inside helps you decide if you want to buy that product, reuse that empty container, or recycle it. Honestly, more and more plastic products are not accepted at recycling facilities because there is no market for them. Plastic identified with the numbers 1,2,4 or 5 are safe to reuse at home. You can store food in these, wash them by hand with mild detergent, and get plenty of use out of them. However, you should not heat these single-use plastic containers and you certainly should NOT put them in the microwave. No plastic should ever go in the microwave. When you microwave plastic, the product releases toxins and products into your air, water and food that are not healthy and not meant to be consumed.
The plastics that you should not reuse at home are identified by the numbers 3,6 or 7. For various reasons, these plastics are unhealthy, release toxins into your food and beverage, are should not be purchased or reused. The most frequently used one of these is #6 styrofoam. Styrofoam should not be heated. When heated it releases styrenes into your food or beverage, and these are toxic. So, why is it that companies serve hot coffee in styrofoam cups? Hmm, they ought not to do that. Bad companies. When I searched through all my saved plastics I did find a styrofoam tray that had housed chicken breasts, as well as 2 clear clamshell containers that I purchased at a school cafeteria. They were salad containers. I'm sad that a school was utilizing unhealthy plastics and you better believe I'm going to write a letter to the school district about that poor practice. I hope this was helpful to you. Please click Like, Subscribe, and leave any questions in the comments section. Frugal Fani says Peace!
11 сен 2024
