The Search for the Perfect Container

When we started Recirclable, we had no idea how much time we would spend researching and testing containers. Finding the perfect reusable container is really unexpectedly tough! There are so many requirements that need to be met, it can feel like a daunting and elusive goal!

Stackable, Durable, Leakproof, Lightweight, Inert, Dishwasher Safe, Oven Safe, Microwave Safe, Locally and Responsibly Made, Appropriately Sized and more...

What is really needed are reusable container standards - the way it used to be when milk, beer and other drinks came in reusable bottles that were washed, sanitized and refilled.

Until standardization becomes the norm again, we need to keep our eye on the real prize: eliminating single use packaging waste wherever possible. Reuse beats single use ALWAYS!

Over the course of our Recirclable journey, we have had the good fortune of connecting with reuse programs operating at scale in Europe. We spoke with and tested established programs in both France and Germany, to gain the benefit of their experience. Through this and our own early experimentation, we tested many containers of all materials, shapes, sizes and styles - more than we ever imagined! 

What did we learn?

• Glass has been used to store food for ages, is oven and microwave safe, inert and manufactured in the US, but it is heavy and bulky for storage! The US also does not have effective glass reuse strategies - crushing and recycling is energy intensive and unnecessarily inefficient. Programs like Dabba Consigne in France are successfully using locally made glass in their programs, where locally made containers is very important to French consumers. Restaurants like Grainmaker in Boston also use glass containers.
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• Stainless steel is inert, oven safe, durable and lightweight but almost all of the world’s stainless steel products are made in China. This can create supply chain issues, ecological concerns and quality uncertainty. Double-walled products are well-insulated but can be bulky for storage in tight restaurant spaces. They have a long life if they are of high quality and many programs are choosing stainless steel for its lightweight, durable and inert properties, including Recirclable. But the choice needs to be made with caution since "a stainless-steel cup with a return rate lower than 95% could be worse for the environment than a single-use cup given the high carbon footprint for steel production". Steel production generates up to 9% of carbon dioxide emissions every year, and creates toxic pollution that disproportionately impacts environmental justice communities. Perhaps someday there will be more progress on greener steel production and local container manufacturers to minimize supply chain concerns.
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• Plastic is lightweight, durable, stackable, leakproof, can be locally made, but it also has a rightfully earned stigma. It’s important to choose products from trusted manufacturers that adhere to safety standards, and that can sustain hundreds of uses. Several programs have started with plastic containers made in the US or Europe. After seeing the quality, durability and leakproof nature of containers being used at scale by Vytal’s program in Germany, and manufactured by an established Dutch brand (Mepal), and trialing with select customers, we chose to go forward with these to get reuse started in our neighborhood. Since launching, we've also introduced containers from Preserve, a local, well-established and reputable Massachusetts company committed to sustainability. Preserve has a 'Gimme 5' takeback program for their containers.

To see some of the important and emerging work being done to help identify sustainable container choices over the full lifecycle, from manufacturing and transportation through end-of-life, see The Understanding Packaging (UP) Scorecard. And for a great detailed report on why reuse wins on all metrics, see Upstream Solution’s “Reuse Wins” report!

This is a tough problem, decades in the making… takeout is not alone in this problem (see this New York Times article on the challenges in the wine industry) and while we wait for standards and infrastructure to emerge, we need to be agile, experimental and adaptive. Reusing any type of container hundreds of times is always better than our current throwaway culture.

Please support your local restaurants and reuse service providers (there are many popping up all over the US!), and help to shift the mindset from single use to reuse.

Any way is a better way than throw away….! ‍