Ryzex Blog

Saturday October 27th was National Make a Difference Day where thousands of people set aside time to volunteer in their community for various organizations.  Ryzex proudly promoted the day and encouraged employees to take time out of their busy weekend to volunteer in our community.  Ryzex employees embraced the idea and took part in painting the Red Cross building, Distributing fliers for the Arthritis Foundation, and planting trees for the Nooksack Salmon Enhancement Association.  One volunteer employee openly shared that his highlight was “having my eldest son with me experiencing the joy of contributing towards making mother earth beautiful.”  Thank you to everyone who volunteered on Saturday and who volunteers on a regular basis!

The Ryzex corporate office isn’t located within walking distance of many restaurants, so I like to salute any employee that brings their lunch from home instead of hopping in their cars to drive to the nearest fast food chain for lunch. In addition to reducing air pollution, they are eating healthier and saving money, too. So, congratulations if you are one of those dedicated brown baggers! Here are some additional tips and suggestions on how to make your brown bag a little greener:

1. Do you pack your lunch in a disposable plastic or paper bag? If so, why not consider upgrading to a reusable lunch box or bag. There are so many options available right now made from a variety of materials and in a range of sizes, and most are practical and affordable.

2. What about the packaging of the items inside your lunch bag or box? Do you typically pack food in throwaway baggies or purchase goodies in individually packaged servings? There is also a wide assortment of reusable containers on the market that will accommodate everything from your sandwich to all your sides. You can buy your sides in larger packages, or better yet in bulk, to reduce packaging and then fill individual serving-sized reusable containers for grab-and-go lunch packing.

3. Did you know that it’s been reported that 60 million plastic water bottles are thrown out each day in the US? Precious resources go in to making the bottles and there is usually more supply than demand for bottles to recycle so many end up in landfills. Even if we could recycle all those bottles, remember that recycling uses energy, too! Fill a Thermos or reusable bottle with your favorite beverage and pack it in your lunch. And for those trips to the water cooler, you can do your part to prevent waste with the use of a reusable hard plastic or stainless steel water bottle, or a good old fashioned mug or glass.

4. As for your utensils, there are lots of biodegradable options, but even better, keep a set of silverware in your lunch bag or box that can be washed and reused day after day. You can also pack a cloth napkin for an air of sophistication and bonus points for all of the paper towels and napkins you will avoid using! It’s amazing how such simple little changes can make a difference over time. The paper lunch sack and 2-3 baggies most people use for their lunch each day may not seem like a lot on a day to day basis, but they add up. Adopting just these few simple practices can reduce your waste considerably!