The Plastic Dilemma.

Are we ever going to win that battle?

Plastic is everywhere and most alarmingly a ' not given a thought ' commodity. Where does it all go once we've unwrapped a product, eaten a box of biscuits or bought a variety of organic cling wrapped produce? Here in Burgenland we put any and all plastics into our yellow collection bags and hope for the best that it doesn't land up floating across oceans or being eaten by fish. Still, it is most alarming to witness our daily pile of discarded plastics.

Why is almost everything edible still cosseted in plastic? Are the plastic producers in cahoots with the supermarkets? That old excuse of people complaining about others having touched the produce etc is stupid. Yes, some will complain bitterly but one always does get the hecklers, doesn't one? Unwrap the stuff already. Why use plastic around an already encased box of biscuits, pasta or tea?

Perhaps they should pass a law that every town must have a packaging-free supermarket. Imagine having that choice. Imagine bringing your own glass containers and buying beans, pasta or rice from a bulk dispenser? Most towns or even villages will have enough customers to make such a shop viable and entice other shops to follow suit.

As much as we like to put blame on our politicians and producers, we are too blame. Each and every one of us has the power to vote for what we believe in and stand for with the way we spend our money. Each and every time we open our wallet we make a choice for something, even if it is abetting the destruction of our planet.

Biggi