D AY 4
WAKING UP TUESDAY, I realized I
forgot to buy coffee, necessitating an af-
ter-work trip to the Eagle Rock Sprouts,
one of the mainstream chains with bulk
bins. (Another is the aggressively fancy
Erewhon Market.) To avoid using the
plastic produce bags Sprouts provides,
we brought old takeout soup containers,
which a clerk weighed before we went to
the coffee aisle. Along with the coffee
beans and bulk bins of flour and quinoa,
we found a plastic-free roll of dental floss
(yes, this exists, and it’s great).
What’s more, Sprouts’ meat counter
uses paper, so I ordered two cuts of salm-
on, thinking I was really getting the hang
of this minimal waste thing. My feeling of
accomplishment sank when Pam un-
wrapped the fish. “Uh-oh, this might be
lined with plastic,” she said.
In a lightly paranoid panic, I called and
emailed Sprouts customer support,
which got back to me days later. It turned
out Sprouts uses wax- and oil-coated pa-
per, which is not recyclable but which can
go in a compost bin. I considered this a
partial victory.
D AY 5
MANY PRODUCTS USEplastic in
ways that are not obvious. One might as-
sume that paper coffee cups are more en-
vironmentally friendly than their clear
cold-drink counterparts. I’ve occasionally
ordered a hot coffee at Starbucks and left
the plastic lid on the counter. You’re wel-
come, Earth! Alas, this does little good.
Only a small percentage of paper cups get
recycled. Most coffee cups are lined with
plastic to make them waterproof. To be
recycled, the paper must be separated
from the plastic part, something recycling
centers generally don’t do.
This became an issue after a Wednes-
day work lunch in Beverly Hills, when I
was craving a caffeine jolt. The aroma
from the nearby coffee shop was like a
tractor beam, but I’d forgotten my reus-
able mug. (Using refillable mugs has be-
come more complicated with the co-
ronavirus outbreak; Starbucks this week
temporarily stopped accepting them.) I
made it back to the L.A. Times office, mi-
raculously, both caffeine- and plastic-free,
ready to make a deadline, more or less.D AY 6
O N E O F T H E challenges that tripped
me up last year was finding lunch options
near work. Food spots near the L.A.
Times’ El Segundo office are limited, so I
developed a thorough knowledge of where
I could go with little effort, and where I’d
have to bring my own fork. Yelp, alas, does
not have a plastic-free filter.
Takeout is generally anathema to the
waste-conscious consumer, and delivery
services can be even worse, serving up
plastic utensil bundles and plastic con-
tainers, sometimes all wrapped in a plas-
tic bag. I’ve tried putting notes to the de-
livery folks in the Caviar app asking them
to avoid plastic, but those are either
missed or ignored.
The cafeteria across the street is a solid
option for those with time to dine in. The
nearby Mediterranean cafe is decent, but
it uses plastic utensils, like most fast-cas-
ual establishments. My preference is the
strip-mall pizza joint Il Romanista, which
serves its slices on wooden trays and a
sheet of paper to catch the oil. Yes, plastic
utensils are available, but come on, it’s
pizza. Just use your hands.
Pam’s strategy is to get meals from her
nearby Lemonade by ordering food to go,
but on a paper plate. This draws deeplyperplexed looks from servers, unless she
explains the reason for the request.D AY 7
AFTER JUST A few days back in the
plastic-free game, I’m struck by how lim-
ited these efforts really are. Reducing
plastic use feels a little like going
pescatarian instead of vegan. But think-
ing about it regularly reminds me of all the
other measures I could take to reduce my
planetary impact.
I could cut meat from my diet, replace
my clunky commuter car with an electric,
or actually get that compost bin. It’s diffi-
cult for daily gestures of plastic avoidance
to feel meaningful compared to the emis-
sions resulting from just getting around
Los Angeles. But McCallum’s point, I
think, is that we can all make modest
steps that, in totality, could make some
difference.
My existential dread gave way to curi-
osity when I went to the local pet supply
store, Echo Bark, to pick up kibble for our
tiny dog, Remy.
The plastic-free craze has surprisingly
not yet made the jump to the pet owners
market. There were no bulk bins of
scoopable dry kibble that I could find.
However, there are multiple brands of bio-
degradable dog waste bags, so I may
switch to those. What’s more Los Angeles
than considering the environmental foot-
print of your 10-pound mini dachshund?
After momentarily wondering how
many people prepare their own dog food
for the sake of environmental ethics, I
compromised by buying in bulk. Instead
of the 4-pound plastic food bag, I grabbed
the 10-pound pack of small-breed chow,
which I carry under my arm along with a
tote bag and a tumbler full of cold brew.
That has to count for something, right?LATIMES.COM F7
Illustration byTim LahanFor The Times
photos byRyan FaughnderLos Angeles Times>GIVEN HOW MANY plastic
products we buy every day, it’s hard
to think about cutting plastic out of
your life. A few years ago, the
Guardian reported that people
around the world buy 1 million
plastic bottles per minute. So
where do you begin changing it up?
Beth Terry, who writes about how
she kicked the plastic habit over a
decade ago at myplasticfreelife
.com,advises newcomers to try not
to do everything at once. Set rea-
sonable goals and go from there.
Here are some tips from her list of
100 Steps to a Plastic-Free Life.THE BIG FOUR
> You’ve likely already figured out
how to banish single-use plastic
water bottles, bags, straws and
produce bags by shopping with
your own reusable bags and refill-
ing water bottles rather than buy-
ing single-serve items. Step it up by
bringing your own containers for
takeout food and leftovers.FRESH BREAD
> Avoid bread in plastic bags by
buying fresh loaves from a bakery
or farmers market and putting
them in a cloth bag or tin. Terry
uses leftover jumbo popcorn bins.ON THE ROAD
> Bring your own mug when you
travel to avoid using plastic or
Styrofoam cups in your hotel room.
Also carry a set of reusable utensils
for eating. Ditto for headphones;
don’t grab the ones airlines hand
out for free, which often are
wrapped in plastic too.LITTLE THINGS
> Just say no to extra packaging
such as those little plastic plat-
forms (called “package savers”)
placed in the middle of your to-go
pizza. Terry says you can ask to
skip the three-legged pizza saver
when you place your order.LET IT GO
> Most frozen foods come in boxes
lined with or coated in plastic. “I
agonized over which brands of
frozen meals used the best contain-
ers,” Terry writes, “but in the end,
there was just no sound alterna-
tive.” This means making fresh food
choices to cut plastic waste.CHOOSE BETTER GUM
>Chewing gum, once made from
chicle derived from sapodilla trees,
long ago changed. Companies
turned to plastics and other materi-
als to make it more chewable. You
can find brands, such as Glee Gum,
that still make gum from chicle.WINE WATCH
> How do you know if the bottle of
wine you choose has a cork or plas-
tic stopper? You likely won’t, but
the website Corkwatch
(recork.com/corkwatch) can help.COMING CLEAN
> Hand-wash dishes with baking
soda or bar soap, good replace-
ments for dishwashing liquids.NO GIFTS, PLEASE
>Give experiences rather than
stuff. If you’re the birthday girl or
boy, request that presents be plas-
tic-free or specify a charity.DON’T GO IT ALONE
> Visit myplasticfreelife.com,
treehugger.comand
onegreenplanet.orgfor more tips.DON’T GET
OVERWHELMED. START
WITH DOABLE GOALS
IN YOUR QUEST
TO POLLUTE LESS
BY MARY FORGIONE10
STEPS
TO KICK
THE
HABIT
FOR
GOOD
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