WASHINGTON, Nov. 30, 2015 — To encourage all of us to minimize our impact on the environment this holiday season,Plastics Make it Possible® is offering some easy tips to reduce food waste and packaging waste, as well as a chance to win holiday gifts made with recycled plastics.
“According to EPA, our nation generates an extra 1 million tons of waste between Thanksgiving and New Year’s Day,” said Steve Russell, vice president of plastics at the American Chemistry Council, which sponsors the Plastics Make it Possible® initiative. “By taking a few simple steps, such as remembering to recycle and seeking products made with recycled materials, we all can help lighten our environmental footprint.”
To catch a little holiday spirit and learn how plastics can help us reduce holiday waste, visitors to the Plastics Make it Possible® website can enter the “Ten Days of Holiday Gifts with Recycled Plastics” sweepstakes for a chance to win prizes—including toys, luggage, and home furnishings—made with recycled plastics. The sweepstakes run weekdays from November 30 to December 11, 2015 to help raise awareness of the benefits of recycling and using recycled materials during the holidays.
And to help lighten our collective environmental footprint this holiday season, Plastics Make it Possible® offers these five waste saving tips:
- Reseal. Have you noticed all those lightweight resealable food pouches in the grocery store? These flexible packages use very little material—usually plastics and sometimes other lightweight materials—so they create very little waste. And you can zip them up after opening to store your extras. So look for food sold in resealable pouches, and keep food fresher longer by squeezing out the air as you reseal.
- Love your leftovers. Letting tasty leftovers go to waste is no way to celebrate. You can help reduce food waste during the holidays by promptly transferring food to airtight plastic storage bags and containers. Reducing the air that comes into contact with food is key, so be sure to squeeze excess air out of bags and use appropriately sized containers. And remember to freeze or refrigerate leftovers quickly.
- Recycle while you celebrate. Recycling is one way to cut back on waste, but it isn’t always easy during a party. A simple solution? Set up a designated recycling bin labeled with all the recyclables you can collect, and ask your guests to pitch in! This simple step can benefit the environment—and make party cleanup a lot easier.
- Resolve to recycle bags/wraps. Whether you shop online or at stores this holiday season, chances are you’ll accumulate plastic bags, wraps, shipping pillows, and bubble wrap. This plastic film packaging can be recycled at 18,000 grocery and retail storesacross the U.S., along with plastic bags used for dry-cleaning, bread, produce, and food storage, plus plastic wraps from products such as water bottles, napkins, and more. Look for the storefront collection bins and drop off your clean and dry bags and wraps.
- Close the loop. Looking for eco-friendly gift ideas? Seek out fun and useful items made with recycled plastics. For example, it’s easier than ever to find durable, attractive items such as cutting boards, mixing bowls, measuring cups, food storage containers, and spatulas made with plastics recycled from milk jugs, yogurt containers, bottle caps, and more. If you know a foodie who’s passionate about the environment, these recycled kitchen tools can make great holiday gifts.
Visit the Plastics Make it Possible® website for more information on reducing waste over the holidays and to enter the Ten Days of Holiday Gifts with Recycled Plastics sweepstakes for a chance to win.
Plastics Make it Possible® highlights the many ways plastics inspire innovations that improve our lives, solve big problems and help us design a safer, more promising future. This program is sponsored by America’s Plastics MakersTM through the plastics industriesof the American Chemistry Council.
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The American Chemistry Council (ACC) represents the leading companies engaged in the business of chemistry. ACC members apply the science of chemistry to make innovative products and services that make people’s lives better, healthier and safer. ACC is committed to improved environmental, health and safety performance through Responsible Care®, common sense advocacy designed to address major public policy issues, and health and environmental research and product testing. The business of chemistry is an $801 billion enterprise and a key element of the nation’s economy. It is the nation’s largest exporter, accounting for fourteen percent of all U.S. exports. Chemistry companies are among the largest investors in research and development. Safety and security have always been primary concerns of ACC members, and they have intensified their efforts, working closely with government agencies to improve security and to defend against any threat to the nation’s critical infrastructure.
