Plastic-encased fruits and vegetables aren't uncommon in grocery stores, as plastic is the cheapest and most abundant packaging material by far. Shoppers have come across individually wrapped dates, lemons, broccoli, and more, revealing just how widespread excessive plastic waste is worldwide.
In another recent incident, a customer bought a prepackaged coconut wrapped in an obscene amount of plastic, which sparked an important discussion about waste.
What's happening?
In r/Anticonsumption, a subreddit that highlights the environmental and societal pitfalls of consumer culture, the original poster shared a photo of a young coconut shipped from Thailand. It was wrapped in clear plastic film and contained a plastic stopper, presumably to keep the juice from spilling out and make it easier for customers to stick a straw inside.
"The amount of plastic on this coconut," the OP wrote above the photo.
"If only they came organically pre wrapped," a Redditor quipped.
"It's ok if you're someone who wants to consume something that comes from far away but you also can't act like the plastic is the only problem with this coconut," someone else remarked, explaining that the amount of fuel and packaging it took to ship the product was also a concern.
Why is plastic waste concerning?
While plastic packaging can protect fruits and veggies during shipping and keep them fresh longer, it also creates more trash for shoppers. Excessive packaging may also drive up costs for consumers, especially for precut produce.
Plastic-wrapped coconuts may not seem like a big deal, but the packaging adds to the mountains of the material produced each year. According to the United Nations Environment Programme, the world generates around 440 million tons of plastic waste annually, and this is expected to almost triple by 2050 if production trends continue.
It's estimated that of all the plastic waste created so far, less than 10% has been recycled. That's likely because many plastics produced are for disposable items such as food and drink packaging, and these thin, flexible plastics are widely known for being difficult to recycle. Most end up in landfills or as unregulated waste, contaminating the environment and releasing harmful chemicals into waterways.
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The way it looks 😍 "It blows my mind how much plastic gets wasted like this," said one outraged commenter about the coconut.
What is the company doing about this?
It's unclear what food manufacturer shipped the coconut, so The Cool Down can't speak on the policies it may have regarding plastic waste.
Commenters offered several plausible explanations for the extra packaging.
"I think this is one of those things you can say is for accessibility's sake," one user said.
"The issue here is that they are shipping it to places and are trying to cut down on weight and bulk so they trim off the outer shell thus having to wrap it in protective plastic," another said.
However, some grocers, such as Aldi, are testing paper bands instead of plastic packaging on bananas, which could set an industrywide standard for sustainably packaged produce.
What's being done about plastic waste more broadly?
Companies and lawmakers worldwide have started taking plastic pollution seriously, launching initiatives to curb unnecessary waste. For example, a city in Massachusetts passed a law banning single-use plastic bags in grocery stores. In Washington, state officials enacted a law to make it easier for consumers to identify compostable packaging.
Consumers can help by shopping at stores that sell loose produce, ditching plastic bags in favor of reusable ones, and putting pressure on companies to offer plastic-free packaging.
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