Plastic free living - Plastic Free Shopper

Is Gum Biodegradable? Plastic-free Gum Guide

howfuss — Mon, 25 Feb 2019 14:55:35 +0000

What is chewing gum made of? What exactly am I chewing here?

Its is estimated that over 374 trillion sticks of chewing gum are produced each year, with over 100’000 tonnes of gum being consumed worldwide. That’s one heck of big sticky lump of used chewing gum disappearing somewhere into our environment on an annual basis!

But have you ever stopped to think about whats actually in that rubbery feeling substance that we just pop into our mouths on a daily basis, or why that gum seems to literally ‘stick’ around forever on the pavements and sidewalks?

So lets now have a look at answering the question.. Is gum biodegradable? And if not, then is gum really made from plastic and where can I get plastic-free gum?

Chewing gum ingredients: A quick history of gum.

Chewing gum first developed in the United states from an American Indian custom of chewing on sweetened tree resin. As the custom was taken on by western civilisation, this resin was replaced by a natural form of rubber called Chicle. However, as the popularity of gum increased in the 1960s, this rubber was replaced with a synthetic version which was cheaper to manufacture and is still used in most chewing gums today.

Most modern chewing gums have what’s known as a gum base which makes up the majority of the chewing gum. This synthetic rubbery substance is commonly made from ingredients including:

Butadiene-styrene rubber Isobutylene-isoprene copolymer (butyl rubber)
Paraffin (via the Fischer-Tropsch process)
Petroleum wax
Polyethylene
Polyisobutylene
Polyvinyl acetate

This synthetic plastic/rubber gum base is mixed with sweeteners and flavourings to make up regular chewing gum as we know it. Ingredients such as Polyethylene and Polyvinyl acetate are both common forms of plastic. Polyethylene is found in items such as plastic bottles and food containers, and Polyvinyl acetate is used in glues and adhesives. More info on the manufacture of chewing gum can be found on Wikipedia.

Short of time? Follow this link to find NATURAL GUM WITHOUT PLASTIC!

Share to friends who chew gum!

Does gum biodegrade after its been chewed?

So now we know that chewing gum is made up of a type of synthetic plastic rubber, will it biodegrade after we have chewed it? In a word NO! or not for a very long time.

Chewing gum being made up of mostly plastic will, like many other plastics, take a very long time to completely break down. How long? Well nobody really knows, but we could be talking thousands of years. That’s a long time to be hanging around in the environment with the possibility of causing problems to wildlife both on the land and in our oceans.

What problems are caused by discarded gum?

The amount of gum which is not being disposed of in the correct manner, by namely throwing it into the garbage can, is estimated at being around 80% to 90% of all the gum being consumed. So with 100’000 tonnes per year being chewed that’s up to 90’000 tones going straight into the environment!

As many people don’t even realise that most chewing gums are made from plastic, then even people who are environmentally concerned and would never dream of throwing away litter wouldn’t think twice about spitting out their gum discreetly in the grass at the side of the road or burying it in the sand on the beach. Obviously this discarded gum can go on to be eaten by animals or get into the food chain as it slowly breaks down.

Another main problem associated with gum which is non-biodegradable is when people discard their gum on the floor of cities, cinemas, theatres, historic buildings, sports stadiums and music venues. Here it soon forms a bond with whatever it sticks to and proves to be extremely hard to remove. In the city of Dublin in Ireland alone it was estimated to have cost the council around 250’000 Euros to clean the city of discarded gum, And that’s just the gum from the pavements and hard surfaces.

Chewing gum litter became such a problem in the country of Singapore that they actually banned chewing gum sales in 1992. This was held in place until 2004 and was eventually revised to allow the sale of chewing gum for health reasons only. Strict rules on the sale of gum currently remain in place today.

Ok so there's plastic in gum, but is there a natural plastic free gum I can chew which doesn't cause pollution?

Well its good news! There are a few companies out there who are either still making natural gum, or are new companies making natural biodegradable plastic free gum.

These environmentally friendly gums have a gum base made from a natural product which is harvested from trees in Mesoamerica called ‘Chicle’. When Chewed and discarded it will soon dry and turn into a natural harmless powder.

If people switched to these natural forms of plastic free gum then it would stop the problems associated with the regular discarded gum in our towns and city’s as well as reduce the amount of plastic waste which is causing such damage to wildlife and our environment.

The best natural biodegradable gum and plastic free chewing gum alternatives.

Lets have a look at these greener brands of chewing gum and where we can buy them. The ingredients they use and the packaging they come in tend to vary, however most have a natural gum base made from Chicle.

We have listed Simply Gum and Humble Co Gum as our top 2 favourites because as as well as being all natural biodegradable gum they also have plastic-free packaging! Below are some of our favourite brands and links to where you can buy them in the UK and USA, click the links to read more product details and reviews on Amazon.

1. Simply Gum - Natural gum in plastic free packaging

Amazon.com

Simply Gum | Chewing Gum | Variety Pack – Mint, Cinnamon, Ginger, Fennel, Maple, Coffee | Vegan + non GMO | 15 Pieces per Pack (Pack of 6)

Unlike conventional gum brands, Simply Gum uses all natural ingredients without ANY synthetics. That means no plastic base, no aspartame, and no BHT.

Simply Gum is non GMO certified and kosher certified. It is also vegan and nut-free, soy-free, and palm-free. They use only steam distilled essential oils and extracts, that are non GMO certified, they also never use artificial flavourings or colouring’s!

For those who don’t like sugar alcohols, then their gum is for you! They do use sugar, but its the dried cane juice, which is the least refined sugar available. Also and most importantly, as they only use natural ingredients (including a plastic-free base), their chewing gum is biodegradable and better for the planet!

2. The Humble Co. - Natural chewing gum

Amazon.com

Natural Chewing Bubble Gum (6pk) – Organic, Vegan, Sugar Free, Aspartame Free, Non GMO, 100% Xylitol (Tropical Fruits)

This Chewing gum from The Humble Co. is brought to you by dentists who care about your oral health, our environment and children in need of oral care. Every Humble purchase goes towards funding oral health projects for children in need. All natural ingredients, Non-GMO, Vegan, Biodegradable, No aspartame, Nothing artificial, No plastic gum base, No oil-derived substances, Sugar-Free and low-calorie count!

3. Chicza - Natural organic Mayan chewing gum

Amazon.com

Natural Mayan Chewing Gum"Chicza" – 2 x 12 Mixed Berry Gums

Chicza claim to be the “Worlds First Organic Chewing Gum!” Aspartame Free! Sustainable & Fully Biodegradable, by supporting Chicza, you’ll make a direct contribution to the conservation of the Mayan rain-forest. Certified Organic, Vegan, Kosher, Gluten free, non-GMO, Dairy free, Nut free, Soy free and Fair Trade!

4. Glee Gum

Amazon.com

Glee Gum 6-Flavor Variety pack, 16-Piece Packages (12 Total Packages)

From the summer of 2015 Glee Gum has gone completely plastic free! as stated on their website below…

“For nearly two decades, Glee Gum has been one of the only gums made in North America with a gum base that contains chicle. But, while our gum base has always contained chicle, it wasn’t always possible for us to eliminate synthetic materials entirely from it. In the past, we needed both natural chicle and food-grade, synthetic resins to achieve a good and gummy texture, and for the gum base to work in a large-scale production run. That is, until 2015!

After years of research, we were so excited to debut our new gum base recipe in the summer of 2015. And, we remain proud of it today. It’s 100% natural, made predominantly of chicle with just three additional, natural ingredients: calcium carbonate, candelilla wax, and a pinch of dehydrated citrus peels. We have transitioned all of our Glee Gum flavors to this new gum base. (You can find the new gum base in our Glee Gum Pops as well). We’ve also rolled out a brand new look, with the gum base ingredients listed right on the label.”

5. Chewsy - All Natural Chewing Gum

Amazon.co.uk

Chewsy Gum Lemon All Natural Chewing Gum – Sugar Free, Vegan, Gluten Free, Soy Free, Non GMO 12 Packs (120 Pieces)

A new brand of natural gum from the UK!

“Chewsy was born after learning that the regular chewing gum you see on the supermarket shelves is filled with a lot artificial stuff including aspartame, acesulfame-k, BHT, and a plastic gum base. And that’s just to name a few.

We ditched all the gross, health-harming, chemically-modified stuff that you usually find in gum and made ridiculously healthy and tasty gum from nature and nature only. We are honest. We are clean. We are truly the very best alternative to artificial gum. We love it, we think you will too!”

From the Chewsy Gum website.

The post Is Gum Biodegradable? Plastic-free Gum Guide appeared first on Plastic Free Shopper.

Plastic Free Living: a ‘How-to’ guide to cutting out plastic waste.

howfuss — Tue, 06 Nov 2018 23:11:22 +0000

How to start plastic free living?

What's the problem with plastic anyway and why start living plastic free?

Many people are striving to master the art of plastic free living all over the world, and why not? Our ancestors and even to a certain extent the generation of our grandparents and great grandparents managed just fine without the need to purchase, use and discard plastic in the name of convenience.

However before we start down the road towards plastic free living we may need to educate ourselves on the problems that all this single-use plastic is causing in our world, lets sit back and watch a short video on the subject. WARNING this video contains imagery which may shock or disturb!

Plastic Ocean – United Nations Channel – YouTube

Eye opening, shocking and highly disappointing stuff hey? So what can we take from this video in order to help change this situation?

Well the nearest person that can help to stop all this pollution from single-use plastic is… you!

So therefore how can we help the situation?

Well we can start by telling other people about this problem so more and more of the population are aware of the situation and begin to become conscious of the potential what is happening with all the plastic we use and discard on a daily basis.

People can then begin to make new decisions in the way they make purchases and live their lives in order to bring plastic free living into their everyday existence.. why not start today by sharing this article to your friends on social media!

Spread the word and wake up the planet!

Lets start plastic free living today!

So we have got angry, upset and annoyed about what’s going on in the world and the environment. We have shouted from the rooftops that all this single-use plastic pollution on the planet has got to stop. What now can we do about it, and how do we start plastic free living today?

Well since all is not yet lost, there are a number of alternatives open to us.

To start with we need to educate ourselves further on the whole topic of plastic pollution, so we can make sound and informed decisions on how we may change our lives and routines in order to help to begin putting an end to it.

This will also help when trying to make other people aware of the problems with plastic because we can come across as being well informed about the subject and people are more likely to stop and listen to us and engage in conversation. How do we educate ourselves?? Well for instance we can start by reading books, watching videos and searching the web!

Here are some books we recommend:

Change yourself and learn to live Plastic Free!

Easy! So now you’ve educated yourself and want to put a stop to your own personal consumption of single-use plastic, and are ready for some plastic free living its going to be all plain sailing from now on… isn’t it?

Well unfortunately its not quite as easy as it seems on face value. Once you begin on this journey you will quickly be amazed at how difficult it is to escape from a behaviour pattern that you now realise that you and most other people around you have been part of for so long.

Because our whole way of life has become accustomed and almost completely dependant on the convenience that single-use plastic and the throwaway culture has given us its a very difficult habit to break. Things we usually take for granted such as buying a drink from a shop when we are thirsty will now take on a whole new degree of difficulty as we realise the extent to which plastic has played such a big part in our lives up until this point.

Luckily your not alone in your quest for a plastic free life and there are many brave adventurers who have already gone into the wilderness. Although this change may seem difficult to begin with pretty soon the decisions we make and actions we take will begin to become second nature to us. In other words don’t worry, life will get easier again with time and we will pretty soon be feeling good about our new lives as we stop making plastic waste part of our lives.

Lets look at a video by someone in pursuit of total plastic free living

What Are You Wasting For? | Documentary by Jennifer Jane Jones shared via YouTube.

Products to get started with plastic free living and where to buy them!

So with the help of some essential reusable products we really can begin on our journey towards living the plastic free lifestyle and help to play our part in stopping the pollution caused by single-use plastic today before its too late.

Buy investing in just a few essential reusable plastic free products we can quickly see a dramatic change in the amount of plastic we’re consuming and can work towards leaving a dramatically smaller plastic footprint on our environment.

Below we have selected some of the best and most popular reusable products to you with handy links to where they can be quickly and easily purchased online. Join thousands of people who are now putting these to good use in their every day lives whilst they embark on the road towards plastic free living!

1. Reusable Coffee Cups.

Reusable coffee cups are a must to have if you want your favourite drink on the go without any plastic waste. Single-use cups may look like they are made from recycled paper but they all have a plastic lining actually making them unrecyclable.

With many coffee shops now offering a discount if you bring your own cup, then there is really no excuse not to make these a part of plastic free lifestyle.

2. Reusable produce bags really are a must have!

Reusable produce bags are a life saver when it comes to plastic free living. If you go to any supermarket today and head for the fruit and veg section we are faced with either the plastic wrapped prepackaged option or if their is a loose option then we are almost expected to grab a small clear plastic bag and pack them for ourselves.

We don’t need to do this! Just by purchasing a few reusable produce bags made from natural materials and taking them with us on our weekly shop, we can put a stop this unnecessary waste.

3. Buy a reusable steel water bottle and never throw away a plastic bottle again!

Buying a reusable steel water bottle and carrying it with you everyday is simply the best habit we can acquire. With an estimated one million plastic bottles being consumed worldwide every minute its easy to see our relationship with this type of single-use product has to stop. Start a new and much more environmentally friendly relationship with a new and stylish reusable water bottle today!

4. Stainless steel lunchbox! Buy one to carry your lunch, a takeaway or even fill at the deli-counter.

Stainless steel lunch boxes are not only tough and stylish reusable products, they really can help to reduce the plastic waste in your life. Buy either carrying your homemade lunch, asking a takeaway to put your food directly into your lunchbox, or asking the local delicatessen to use it instead of the usual disposable plastic ones we can drastically cut down on plastic consumption.

5. Reusable plastic free and 100% natural shopping bags.

A reusable shopping bag is a must have item to carry with us everyday. Governments have already started to clamp down on the use of plastic bags so why not speed up the demise of this wasteful item by buying a much nicer plastic free and natural alternative? From small tote bags which can be tucked away in a pocket or handbag to bags from natural materials which double as stylish fashion accessories, the choices to use in our plastic free lifestyle are vast.

6. A Bamboo Toothbrush?

Bamboo Toothbrushes are a great choice for plastic free living. Just think of all the plastic toothbrushes you have bought, used and thrown away in your whole life… Now realise that most of these are still around somewhere in our environment and will be around for possibly thousands of years to come!

By choosing to use bamboo toothbrushes we can drastically reduce our plastic footprint. Most of these products do contain plastic bristles still but these however can be removed and put in the bin and are only a very tiny amount of plastic compared with the standard plastic toothbrush. The bamboo handle can then be composted naturally in the garden or disposed of in in green waste recycling. Make the switch to a bamboo toothbrush today!

7. Finally and most importantly... START CARRYING A BAG WITH YOU, EVERY DAY!

There’s one thing which has lead the use of so much throw away single-use plastic around the world which is now causing so much pollution in our environment… Convenience! With this convenience also comes along its ugly brother… Laziness!

In the past people just simply carried a bag with them when they left the house, containing a few essential items they would need for their day out. A bag would obviously also be needed to bring home things that were bought or gathered during the day such as food. As we have now come to rely on disposable products where ever we go many of us now leave the house with only a phone, keys and a credit card.

As we go about our daily lives we know that if we need a drink, some food, or to buy some thing then its OK if we don’t have the means to carry it as this will always be provided with our purchase in the form of a single-use plastic product. We can simply make our purchase, enjoy, and then dispose of the waste, keeping ourselves free of the hassle of forethought and planning and having to be lumbered with carrying anything with us.

Well we if we look at the items above, possibly minus the toothbrush if you like, then that’s not really much to carry with us at all. But if we would all just start carrying these reusable items around with us and making use of them daily then the amount of throw away single-use plastic entering our environment would drop massively overnight.

So in conclusion, why delay? We need to stop to this habit of relying on convenience, quit our laziness and go and get a nice fashionable preferably plastic free bag, fill it with some essential reusable items, and START PLASTIC FREE LIVING TODAY!!

The post Plastic Free Living: a ‘How-to’ guide to cutting out plastic waste. appeared first on Plastic Free Shopper.

Go Green & Save Money

howfuss — Mon, 29 Oct 2018 22:35:24 +0000

The post Go Green & Save Money appeared first on Plastic Free Shopper.

Plastic Free Coffee

howfuss — Mon, 29 Oct 2018 22:28:05 +0000

How to drink coffee without leaving a plastic footprint?

Billions of people around the world enjoy coffee on a daily basis, in fact according to the International Coffee Organisation (ICO), its about 1.4 billion cups of coffee a day worldwide. The United States is thought to be the biggest consumer of coffee however many other countries have a higher average intake per person with Scandinavian countries such as Finland coming out on top.

Unless being consumed either at home or in a cafe then one can only assume that most coffee people are drinking is in the form of takeaway coffee. Along with our lovely daily pick me up enjoyed on the go each day, there unfortunately comes an unwanted guest… The disposable plastic coffee cup!

It is estimated that consumption of these plastic lined largely un-recyclable cups in the UK alone is a staggering 7 million per day and 2.5 billion every year! That’s a hell of a lot of discarded plastic, and with many of these cups inevitably making their way into our environment on land and in our oceans where they could stay for thousands of years, its easy to see that this vast consumption has to stop, now.

The Answer?

Simple! Stop being lazy and relying on the convenience that single-use plastics provide at the expense of the environment and start carrying a reusable coffee cup with you every day!

There really is no excuse not to use one of these great cups, and with many coffee shops now offering a discount if you bring your own cup, you can also save money by going green.

Below are a few of the best ones we highly recommend:

The post Plastic Free Coffee appeared first on Plastic Free Shopper.

How to stop using plastic

howfuss — Sat, 02 Jun 2018 20:53:53 +0000

We have seen the news, stood with jaw dropped at the images in the media, and been through the anger and emotions that come with waking up to the devastation that plastic pollution is having on our environment. So how to stop using plastic and work towards decreasing the size of our plastic footprint in order to play our part in cleaning up the planet?

In this post we will be looking into various aspects of our lives and pointing out areas where we could make small changes which really can help to decrease our use of single-use plastic and disposable plastic products.

This blog post aims to be built up over time to cover the many situations we may find ourselves in, with the hope we can help you to make the decisions which could lead us to live a more plastic free life for the sake of our environment and for ourselves as part of that environment.

Below we are going to look at what a typical day in the life of someone who is striving to live as plastic-free as possible could be like in order to showcase products and spread new inventive ideas for living. By making various decisions along the way, by choosing to use more environmentally friendly products and by adjusting our lifestyles we just may be able to make our consumption of single-use plastic become a thing of the past…

Although we do recommend products which contain less plastic and are potentially less damaging to the environment, we would always advise people first and foremost to reuse or to make use of products which are already owned and still have a serviceable lifespan. Please don’t throw something away simply because there is now a greener product available! Reduce, Reuse, Recycle are the golden rules to follow here…

Wake up and choose to be plastic free!

The post How to stop using plastic appeared first on Plastic Free Shopper.

Plastic free living - Plastic Free Shopper

Is Gum Biodegradable? Plastic-free Gum Guide

What is chewing gum made of? What exactly am I chewing here?

Chewing gum ingredients: A quick history of gum.

Share to friends who chew gum!

Does gum biodegrade after its been chewed?

What problems are caused by discarded gum?

Ok so there's plastic in gum, but is there a natural plastic free gum I can chew which doesn't cause pollution?

The best natural biodegradable gum and plastic free chewing gum alternatives.

2. The Humble Co. - Natural chewing gum

5. Chewsy - All Natural Chewing Gum

Plastic Free Living: a ‘How-to’ guide to cutting out plastic waste.

How to start plastic free living?

What's the problem with plastic anyway and why start living plastic free?

Lets start plastic free living today!

Change yourself and learn to live Plastic Free!

Products to get started with plastic free living and where to buy them!

1. Reusable Coffee Cups.

2. Reusable produce bags really are a must have!

3. Buy a reusable steel water bottle and never throw away a plastic bottle again!

4. Stainless steel lunchbox! Buy one to carry your lunch, a takeaway or even fill at the deli-counter.

5. Reusable plastic free and 100% natural shopping bags.

6. A Bamboo Toothbrush?

7. Finally and most importantly... START CARRYING A BAG WITH YOU, EVERY DAY!

Go Green & Save Money

New Article Comming Soon!

Plastic Free Coffee

How to drink coffee without leaving a plastic footprint?

How to stop using plastic

Wake up and choose to be plastic free!