Save plastic on the go: 6 simple tips for less waste in everyday life

Quickly picking up a coffee from the bakery or putting out a cigarette on the street: Many people on the go aren't even aware of the issue of saving plastic. Plastic waste dominates the cityscape, and the coronavirus pandemic has made the topic of takeaway even more important. So here are our tips for how you can achieve a big impact with little effort.

A life without plastic sounds unimaginable to most people, so accustomed have we become to it. This is despite the fact that plastic production only really began 70 years ago. While it may seem to make many things easier and more convenient at first glance, a life with less waste is not only possible, but also feels incredibly good! Just think of our water bottles : We automatically pack them every time we go outside, allowing us to easily do without plastic bottles altogether.

Saving plastic on the go: also crucial for our oceans

Worldwide studies on coastal and marine cleanups prove that the most common plastic products found in the oceans are disposable . They were designed from the outset for single use and are primarily created by

The good news: you can do something every day!

How you consume and the impact you have on the world is up to you every day. With these tips, you can make better choices and contribute to a cleaner planet. Save plastic on the go – let's get started!

1. Save plastic on the go – especially with coffee to go

In Germany, 320,000 coffee cups are consumed every hour , or 2.8 billion annually. If you line up the cups, you'd create a chain of German coffee cups in just one year that could circle the world seven times. Another numerical example from 2020: We use 34 cups per person per year for hot drinks alone, and the waste generated by takeaway cups in Germany amounts to 55,000 tons annually.

But that doesn't have to be the case. Simply bring your own cup or borrow one from the deposit system! The social startup RECUP has developed a Germany-wide system that lets you get your coffee or tea in a reusable cup from thousands of partners. You pay a €1 deposit for the freshly filled cup, take it with you, and return it unwashed to any other partner. They rinse the cup, and the process starts again, so each of the mint-colored cups is reused hundreds of times. You can find out which cafés and bakeries in your area are participating on the RECUP app and website.

2. Takeaway without waste? Of course it's possible!

As already mentioned, the restrictions caused by the coronavirus pandemic currently prevent us from consuming our coffee and food in the café or restaurant we're in. And many want to support local restaurants by ordering to-go. Completely understandable! But there are also options for saving plastic while on the go. According to the Federal Environment Agency, packaging waste is continuously increasing. Ask at the café or restaurant if you can bring your own containers. Hygiene is particularly important here, which is why the Food Association has published a fact sheet on reusable containers. It's important that the containers you bring with you are really clean. Tip: Our dear friends at Eco Brotbox makes stylish stainless steel containers that make your food on the go both stylish and waste-free. Any other heat-resistant multipurpose container will also work.

3. Goodbye plastic bottles

It's full of plasticizers and chemicals, releases microplastics and hormone-like substances into our drinks, and harms the environment: there aren't many good arguments in favor of plastic bottles, even in a deposit return system. And yet consumption is rising rapidly worldwide: in 2017, one million plastic bottles were produced every minute , and by 2021, this number is expected to rise to half a trillion annually. The majority of these are for drinking water, and this could easily be avoided in so many countries. We have the enormous luxury of clean water coming straight from the tap. For many people, saving plastic on the go starts with precisely this issue. This is one of the reasons why we founded soulbottles. Choose one of our fair and plastic-free glass or stainless steel drinking bottles that suits you and will serve you water with a unique look from now on. Or fill up your old, rinsed mate bottle or drink from glasses. It doesn't really matter - the main thing is that we put a stop to the plastic madness and its growth plans!

And if you're ever unsure whether you can drink the water from your taps, on the go, or while traveling, simply get the soulfilter water filter ! Our mobile water filter for soulbottles. It filters out viruses, bacteria, heavy metals, chemical residues, and chlorine.

4. #stopsucking: alternatives to plastic straws

Starting in 2021, the plastic straw will disappear from the scene, as it's on the list of single-use items the EU plans to ban soon. And rightly so: German straw consumption is also enormous, with approximately 40 billion plastic straws used annually. So let's not wait for legal changes and immediately rethink our sipping habits: Simply order your smoothie, cocktail, or any other to-go beverage with a smile and the addition "no straw, please." Or get alternatives. Straws are available in stainless steel, hard plastic, bamboo, and glass, for example, and you can also find beautiful glass straws for your soulbottle here!

5. tip away from the road

Cigarette butts belong off the streets and out of nature. Kicking out butts should no longer be a casual move. Filters are also made of plastic, which decomposes into microplastic particles, each containing around 4,000 chemicals. Many of these are so toxic that one filter contaminates up to 500 liters of water. Currently, 65% of filters end up on the streets and in nature—let's change that, find trash cans, and make fellow smokers aware of this. A nice idea that doesn't involve a raising finger: give away portable ashtrays, for example, an old metal candy tin.

6. Shirt and book are also fine without bags

We love it unpackaged! Since supermarkets stopped giving away plastic bags for free, more and more grocery purchases are being carried to their destination in their own bags and bags. If that doesn't always work for you, simply throw a small carrier bag in your backpack (like these fairly produced ones from Melawear) and you'll be prepared for spontaneous purchases. Hot tip: the bag is also great for shopping, and you can even safely put a book, medicine, or new headphones in your own bag without having to accept an extra plastic bag.

nobody has to be perfect

High five, if you're reading this paragraph, you're already a few tricks smarter for reducing plastic in your everyday life. We know from our own experience that...