Eco-Lunches

First published in the Mix, September 2007.

The smell of cedar pencils rouses many memories for me: running fast after boys on the playground, listening to Mrs. Couch read aloud the story of Bambi’s Children and carrying my favorite lunch pail that depicted Disney’s foxy characters of Robin Hood and Maid Marion. Starting yet another school term, my teenagers have no idea what cedar pencils smell like. Not that I’m interested in deforesting the land so that they understand what school was like before computers. But since I do pack their lunches—and have for 12 years—I want to search my wistful mind for old-time solutions that may resolve a modern problem: how to pack an eco-lunch? First of all, let’s recognize why home-prepared school lunches may be unhealthy for the environment. Many juice boxes never biodegrade; single servings of any food product demands more packaging materials; and plastic water bottles are engulfing landfills. School cafeterias on the other hand serve food onto washable trays and often recycle milk cartons and food waste. While ahead of the curve in recycling or reducing waste, school cafeterias do not always make the grade with the meals they serve. In fact, many of us pack school lunches because of a child’s special dietary needs or to avoid the foods we would not serve our families at home. It is a choice. Nonetheless it is a choice we can improve by learning a few essentials to packing an eco lunch. 

Food choices

Keep three points in mind when selecting food. First, consider they type of food you want to pack in a lunch. Avoid processed foods as they are often high in calories, sodium and words none of us could spell on a chalk board (or in a text message). Select fresh, whole and in-season foods that fit your child’s dietary needs, too. Talk to the department managers at your co-op to determine seasonal selections and watch for member and co-op advantage specials. Second, remember the importance of variety. While it may seem a good idea to buy that case of granola bars on sale, how realistic is it to expect your child to enjoy granola day after day for a month? You don’t want taste-bud boredom to lead to food waste. Preparing a menu will help keep the lunch ideas fresh, too. Even if you do pack a granola bar regularly, change the variety of companion foods or pack something completely different or special on Fridays. Third, pay attention to packaging. Bulk has always been the eco-friendly choice and co-ops are famous for their exciting bulk aisles. Bring your own containers from home for bulk purchases like almond butter, dried mango and baking mixes. Reuse some of those single serving containers you may already have like yogurt cups—they make great snack-size holders for almonds and dried apricots or Glad Corn. And when you buy yogurt, consider buying a large container and freezing it. Don’t get tricked into buying things like yogurt in a tube, juice in a box and apple sauce in a cup. Buy in the least amount of packaging possible. 

Eco-containment

Now that you’ve thought out the food plan, here comes the tricky part: how to get a wholesome lunch from your house to school (and back). Nostalgia pays off when we think back to our frugal grandmothers. They had practical uses for items that can become part of the eco-lunch essentials.  Even if you do not make freezer jam, jelly jars are still easy to come especially at garage sales or thrift stores. These make terrific reusable containers for yogurt parfaits, layered green salad with dressing, three bean salad, apple sauce and pasta or rice salads. Of course, keep in mind the age and personality of your child as glass may not be appropriate. An alternative would be stainless steel containers that come in different sizes for other items like sandwiches. Another bargain buy at garage sales or thrift stores would be what my grandmother called “camp-ware.” This is often mismatched, nickel-a-piece silverware that packs easily in a home-lunch and doesn’t cause too much distress if it gets lost over the school year. Of course, there are other options found in most camping gear stores, but don’t get one that includes a knife. While appropriate for camping, your child’s school will take issue with blades. Bamboo or reusable plastics are optional, too. Liquids require thoughtful containment to avoid leakage and still remain eco-friendly. Stainless steel bottles are great for water and can stay cool for several hours. Thermoses can enliven lunch with soup (select a wide mouth design for hot foods) and warm beverages in the cold of winter. Juice or soymilk can be contained in a thermos, too. 

Lunch box choices

Minnesota pioneer children carried tin pails; I had Robin Hood and my children had a myriad of colored vinyl lunch bags over the years. Today’s most eco-friendly choices, again recall days even older than my memories. The old-styled pail carried by the likes of Laura Ingalls Wilder is making a come back in a stainless steel. Some even have compartments, eliminating the need for other containers. Linden Hills Natural Home Store carries the stainless steel lunch tote as well as lead-free vinyl bag in vivid, glossy colors. My eldest daughter challenged herself last year to reuse a paper sack until it wore out. She made it last almost three months. My other two teens have found it practical to simply place the components of their lunch into their book bags. Be creative and have fun involving your school-age children in the process. Let them know that an eco-lunch is one that helps reduce the impact of excess garbage. Not only can they take a healthy lunch to school with them, they can also create a healthier environment. However you bag it, the idea is to reduce waste.