An office pantry snack is often welcome, but one box of cookies is causing people to second-guess.

What's happening?

On Reddit's r/Anticonsumption thread, a user shared an image of a cookie box designed for sharing, except each cookie came sealed in its own plastic wrapper. 

The original poster quickly called attention to the waste, saying, "Box of cookies but every cookie has its own plastic wrapper. Smfh."

Many users agreed that the packaging was excessive, arguing that the extra plastic adds cost, inconvenience, and trash for consumers without offering much benefit. 

"So unnecessary," said one commenter. "Hate seeing it, I pay to recycle this too." 

However, others noted they've seen similar packaging in offices, schools, and conference settings, where individually wrapped items are often justified as more sanitary.

"These are common in office settings, because every office has that guy who picks his nose and then rummages around in the snack bowl," another Redditor added.

Still, several commenters pushed back on that logic, pointing out that hygiene concerns don't automatically require layers of single-use plastic, especially when alternatives like compostable packaging already exist.

Why are individually wrapped cookies concerning?

Plastics are made from fossil fuels, and most food wrappers are not recyclable due to mixed materials and food residue. This means all of the extra wrapping that goes over each cookie will just add to already growing landfills.

Beyond this, there's also a cost to the consumer. Individually wrapped snacks often take more time to open, create more trash at home or work, and can even make products more expensive overall due to higher material and production costs.

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Is the company doing anything about this?

It's not clear which brand produced the cookies shown in the Reddit post or which company purchased them for their employees. However, in some cases, companies argue that individually wrapped items reduce food waste by extending shelf life or preventing contamination. 

Sustainability experts, though, have increasingly questioned whether those benefits outweigh the environmental downsides. This remains especially the case when many brands are simultaneously pledging to reduce plastic use and emissions.

Some food companies have begun experimenting with recyclable or compostable wrappers. For example, biodegradable, petroleum-free film has been developed to preserve the shelf life of fish. 

Elsewhere, Rutgers and Harvard University researchers have created a spray-on, plant-based mesh for produce.

What's being done about excessive packaging more broadly?

Momentum is building against unnecessary packaging. Governments in several regions have introduced extended producer responsibility laws, which require companies to help pay for the waste their products create. 

Meanwhile, consumer pressure has pushed some brands to redesign packaging or offer low-waste alternatives.

On a personal level, shoppers can support companies that prioritize minimal or recyclable packaging. Or, they can choose bulk or package-free options when available.

While it may be hard to control what large companies do, individual action can still speak volumes.

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