Reduce Your Use
Of Single-Use Plastics

Why Reduce Single-Use Plastics?

​Plastic, when it breaks down, becomes microplastics. We eat, swallow, or breathe 2,000 particles of plastic per week - equivalent to the weight of a credit card. Plastics are made from fossil fuels and additional harmful toxic chemicals. Doctors and scientists have found these microplastics and chemical toxins in our bodies. Some are highly toxic and include carcinogens, neurotoxicants, and endocrine disruptors. These chemicals pose serious risks to human health. 

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One way to protect yourself from these toxins is to avoid using plastic. The chemicals in plastic are not tightly bound to the plastic and can quickly be released, especially when exposed to heat, fats, and oils. People can be exposed to chemicals and microplastics due to wear and tear on the container when washing plastic dishes in a dishwasher or opening and closing the plastic packaging e.g., a plastic bottle of water. 

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One recent study found that a 1-liter plastic bottle of water could contain approximately 240,000 nano plastic fragments, small enough to enter the bloodstream and cross-protective barriers in the body. Coffee cups are lined with plastic and combined with the hot coffee leach chemicals. Did you know – that ALL Southbury Stores Accept Clean, Personal Reusable Cups When Purchasing Drinks? Yes, even your big chains such as Dunkin Donuts, Panera, and Starbucks all accept your clean personal reusable cups. (Starbucks in Southbury added an option on their mobile app to support using your own cup). 

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Only 9% of plastics get recycled properly. In order for plastic to be recycled, there must be a company that will purchase the plastic and repurpose it into another product form. If the plastic does not get purchased, it becomes trash and ends up in a landfill or is burned, both of which release toxic chemicals into the environment. These plastics can last: 

• Plastic bottles/cups/containers last 450 years.

• Styrofoam lasts FOREVER!

• Plastic straws last 200 years.

• Plastic utensils last 100+ years.

• Plastic bags last more than 20 years.

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When Ordering Takeout Meals 

• Refuse the plastic utensils, straws, and condiment packages. 

• Bring your own reusable cup for beverages

• Support establishments that use non-plastic alternative packaging

• Avoid black plastic containers as they not only contain toxic chemicals but may also contain flame-retardant chemicals from recycled electronics. Black plastic containers cannot be recycled.

• Encourage your favorite restaurants to implement sustainable solutions.

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Taking Home Leftovers

• The best choice is to bring your own reusable container made of aluminum, glass, or silicone.

• Encourage your favorite restaurants to stop using black plastic and styrofoam containers. Encourage them to implement sustainable solutions.

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Home Food Storage Containers 

Many of us use single-use plastic in our homes, e.g., sandwich bags, saran wrap, reuse of plastic containers. These products come in direct contact with our food and can leach toxic chemicals affecting our health. 

• Over time, replace your plastic containers with aluminum, stainless steel, glass, or silicone.

• Never heat food in a plastic container -- heat releases toxins.