Salad bags do come in handy, they are a way for you to pick your pop the pre-wash on your plate or any meals but there have been concerns on whether it is recyclable or not.
Recycling is important for a lot of reasons such as preventing pollution, saving energy, saving money, allowing the product to be used to its full extent, and reducing the need to harvest new raw materials.
Most people think a salad bag will indicate the freshness of the item but that is not the case.
However, considering the increased consumption of vegetables, salad bags do save them from nutrient loss and bacteria. Food scientists have this bag engineered in a way that breathes but still controls the quality.
Salad bags are not recyclable but if you must, you should know the process is quite a very complicated one as it is made from film plastic which is not just complicated but almost impossible as well. Note that they are different types of salad bags and there is one which is the stretchy type and it can usually be returned to the retailer for recycling.
Recyclability of any material is dependent on its ability to reacquire the properties when it was in its original form. Considering how popular salad bags are, it’s important to know if they can be of harm to the environment.
How Does Recycling Help The Environment?
The basic phase of recycling means converting waste materials into new objects. Recycling helps protect the environment and can be used to save renewable products.
There are quite a lot of reasons associated with recycling and research done on the benefits of recycling in 2016 shows that every penny shown on recycling creates job opportunities for Americans.
By learning how to recycle correctly, you can help reduce the volume of waste in landfills. The three key principles of recycling are reduced, reuse, and recycle. Recycling also keeps products in circulation and looking at the system view of point, it protects the climate by keeping natural habitats at bay.
Another advantage recycling has is that it reduces the need for extracting, refining, and processing raw material. Recycled materials are converted into new products which mean there will be a great reduction in the rubbish sent to the landfill.
Are Salad Bags Recyclable?
All paper-based packaging is recyclable but salad bags are made with plastic film. There are two main types of plastic film, one is used for making pre-washed salad bags and the other is used in making salad bags that can not be stretched and often have a bit of crinkly sound when handling them.
Regardless of any type of salad bag used, it is rarely recyclable.
Greens are healthy and needed in your diet plan but your only source of fresh leaves which happens to be salad bags is not recyclable. The best alternative is to grow your greens or stick to buying them fresh from your local farmers.
Recycling rules tend to differ according to the material and if it is made with plastic or contains a trace of it then it can’t be recycled. The best thing will be to avoid these plastic bags completely although it can be hard when buying green salads.
However, if there are no good alternatives, you can consider storing them till there is any known way to have them dropped off in bulk at the store to be recycled.
Why Are Pre-washed Salad Bags Not Recyclable?
The major reason salad bags can’t be recycled is that it comes in plastic bags that have extra layers to protect the greens however this is exactly what stops them from being recyclable.
It is best to dispose of salad bags because most salad plastic containers can’t be recycled.
Plastic wraps and film can be taken to a grocery store or retail that accepts material for recycling but note that many will not accept the plastic film, biodegradable or compost packaging and this also includes pre-washed salad mix bags.
In Summary
Some companies have tried to combat plastic waste by switching to compostable bioplastics however this can’t be said for salad bags yet.
Luckily, in April 2022, the government announced introducing a new Plastic Packaging Tax which means all kinds of plastic products will be required to contain at least 30% recycled material.