The pandemic drove rise in plastic takeout waste. Now's the time to end the trend, activists say
CBC
Throughout the pandemic Toronto residents have increasingly relied on takeout food and its many throw-away containers — think black plastic that can't be recycled — generating a huge amount of unnecessary waste, environmentalists say.
But the silver lining is people, businesses and governments are paying attention and looking for reusable solutions, said Emily Alfred, a waste campaigner with the Toronto Environmental Alliance, leading up to Waste Reduction Week.. And in the long run, the pandemic didn't distract from the growing problem as many feared, Alfred added
"Instead, it's increased the demand and made people realize even more that plastic and waste is also a health crisis," Alfred said. "Single-use plastic is also toxic and something we need to confront. We can't just ignore this."
Erika Reyes is looking to change the way Toronto does takeout. She recently launched Inwit, a "zero waste" takeout program for restaurants.
"Inwit is a startup that wants to inspire more people to embrace sustainability, every day, one step at a time, even if it's not perfect," Reyes told CBC's Here and Now Thursday.
Customers order and pay for their food from participating restaurants on the Inwit app, Reyes said. It will be ready for pickup in insulated, stainless steel containers. They're required to return the containers within seven days, which restaurants wash and reuse, and then earn "impact points" toward their next purchase.
Reyes said the reusable containers are more sustainable than recyclable products like paper bags that are only used once and carbon-intensive to produce. Besides, many of the containers put in Toronto blue bins are not actually recycled, but instead end up as garbage, she noted.