The foodservice industry heavily depends on plastic utensils. Places all over the globe tend to gravitate toward using these disposables because of the convenience and accessibility. It can be difficult to avoid using plastic cutlery, but there are better alternatives that don’t cause danger to our planet.
Although using plastic utensils may seem harmless, the outcomes are far from it. Plastic can be damaging to our atmosphere because they never get recycled, even if put into a recycling bin. The flimsy and lightweight quality makes it difficult to reuse. Plus, when this toxic material gets contaminated, it becomes unable to be repurposed.
Shifting to environmentally friendly utensils is one of the easiest steps to living in a more sustainable world. Change won’t happen overnight, but it can start with removing harmful and artificial disposables from every day meals.
Why Switch to Eco-Friendly Utensils?
Plastic utensils are flimsy and harmful for the environment. They take years to breakdown, if even, and most can only be used once. This cutlery is a $2.6 billion business globally and though it can be more convenient, it does come with a cost. Many of these products end up in our ecosystem somehow and utensils are not excluded from that. They’re the seventh most frequent collected item at beach cleanups.
Plastic cutlery requires approximately 200 years to decompose and can only be done under strong sunlight. The worst part is the microplastics they break down into because they’re toxic to human, animals, and marine life. Once the compounds reach soil and water, plants and sea life are immediately affected.
Eco-friendly utensils are a better and safer substitute for both the environment and our overall health. Depending on what material the utensils are made up from, they can be recycled, composted, or biodegraded.
Eco-Friendly Utensil Substitutions
Here is a list of plastic disposable replacements.
1. Bio-Based Utensils
Bio-based cutlery are made up from renewable resources. These utensils derive from corn starches, which allows product materials to breakdown.
• Karat Earth Heavy Weight Bio-Based Spoons:
• Karat Earth Heavy Weight Bio-Based Forks:
• Karat Earth Heavy Weight Bio-Based Knives:
• Karat Earth Heavy Weight Bio-Based Knives
• Karat Earth Heavy Weight Bio-Based Knives - Wrapped
• Karat Earth Heavy Weight Bio-Based Knives - Black
2. CPLA Utensils
CPLA utensils are compostable and strong cutlery made of a combination of polylactic acid (PLA) and lactic acid.
• Karat Earth CPLA Compostable Cutlery Kits
• Karat Earth Wrapped CPLA Compostable Tea Spoon
• Karat Earth Wrapped CPLA Compostable Fork
• Karat Earth Wrapped CPLA Compostable Knife
• Karat Earth CPLA Compostable Spork
3. Wooden Utensils
Wooden utensils are more sustainable and a great other option to all types of plastic. They can be sent to an industrial compost rather than a landfill.
• Karat Earth Wooden Compostable Heavy Weight Spoon
• Karat Earth Wooden Compostable Heavy Weight Tasting Spoon
• Karat Earth Wooden Compostable Heavy Weight Fork
• Karat Earth Wooden Compostable Heavy Weight Knife
The Breakdown
It’s important to make more environmentally friendly choices to protect our planet. Using sustainable cutlery lessens pollution and helps preserve our environment. It makes a difference because plastic disposables are one of the most toxic and most used products.
