but along with the fun and celebrations of the holiday, comes a lot of waste. thus, halloween is a great time to assess your waste production. 

there are many ways to reduce your consumption levels surrounding the spooky holiday, including trading old costumes with friends, making your halloween decorations out of repurposed materials, and diying your halloween costumes. check out this fun and informative video published on planet forward last year about the importance of sustainable halloween costumes. 

however, one area that we still find to be a bit of a sustainability challenge is halloween candy wrappers. 

the issue of candy wrappers

candy and snacks pose a big problem due to the single-use plastic that comes with the treats. on average, americans buy more than 600 million pounds (based on recent sales numbers) of candy per halloween season. this candy produces a massive amount of discarded plastic packaging and individual candy wrappers. 

multiple organizations have created candy wrapper recycling programs to help mitigate this problem.

loggerhead marinelife center ran a nationwide unwrap the waves program to collect candy wrappers and recycle them, to prevent them from entering our oceans. for the three years this program ran, unwrap the waves recycled more than 450,000 candy wrappers.

similarly, rubicon created its trash to treasure program in 2019 to distribute recycling boxes during the halloween season to businesses, schools, and community organizations, in which people were encouraged to bring their candy wrappers. once filled, the candy wrapper-filled boxes were sent back to rubicon to be cleaned, sorted, and turned into renewed plastic to be used once more. 

in its five years of operation, trash to treasure saw great success, expanding to schools and organizations in every state of the country and valentine’s day season, in addition to halloween.

despite this apparent success of the program, rubicon announced that it would be pausing trash to treasure for the 2024 halloween season.

with rubicon’s program also suspended, there isn’t an equivalent free candy wrapper recycling program.

terracycle sells candy and snack wrapper recycling boxes. however, with a small recycling box at $105, this price range is unfeasible for most individuals.

so what’s the solution to the candy wrapper conundrum?

short answer: it’s not so easy

while consumers can do their best to opt for buying halloween candy with the least amount of plastic packaging, halloween candy exists on the short list of foods that need some sort of individual packaging. 

trick-or-treating etiquette necessitates that candy given out is pre-wrapped with seals and closings intact. this is so parents can ensure that the candy their children are given is safe to eat. thus, we cannot get rid of candy wrappers entirely. 

candy corporations should do their part

we should encourage candy corporations, such as hershey, nestle, and mars, to produce our favorite candies with compostable or recyclable packaging.

additionally, candy corporations themselves should run large-scale candy wrapper recycling programs. taking from the structure of trash to treasure, these corporations should give schools, businesses, and organizations recycling boxes, free of charge, to collect candy wrappers and reuse for the production of future candy. 

mars has done this on a microscopic scale. in 2022, the candy corporation that makes snickers and m&ms, partnered with rubicon to distribute 17,400 candy waste collection bags to u.s. consumers. people were able to fill the bags with candy wrappers and mail them back to a special recycler, g2 revolution, in illinois. 

if all 17,400 bags were mailed back full, mars would have recycled 2 tons of recycled wrappers, which is only a fraction of the total amount of candy wrappers discarded every halloween season. 

better recycling infrastructure

even if more candy corporations ran candy wrapper recycling programs, there still exists the issue of a lack of proper infrastructure to recycle candy wrappers.

candy wrappers and plastic wrappers, in general, pose a difficult challenge for recycling because they are often made of mixed materials, such as plastic and foil. these different materials must be separated during recycling, which adds time and energy to the recycling process. 

additionally, candy wrappers tend to be thin and flimsy, which allows them to easily bypass recycling sorting machines.

candy wrappers must be thoroughly cleaned of the food waste prior to being recycled and the mix of colors on candy wrappers often produces an unappealing brown color when recycled into new materials.

these difficulties cause recycling candy wrappers to be costly and they produce such low-grade plastic that the value of the new plastic doesn’t meet the value of the recycling process. which, in turn, means candy corporations are not inclined to commit to this process. 

better, more efficient recycling infrastructure must be invented to reduce the cost of candy wrapper recycling and make it more profitable for the organizations that engage with this process.

looking to the future

hershey has stated that it is committed to having 100% of their plastic packaging be recyclable, reusable, or compostable by 2030.

additionally, mars has invested hundreds of millions of dollars to redesign 12,000 packaging components to be reusable, recyclable, or compostable.

this is a large feat to surmount, and we will all be watching to see if the first and fourth-largest candy corporations by sales, respectively, can do what it takes to minimize candy wrapper waste and advocate for more sustainable practices, especially with seasonal candy. 

with that, have a safe and festive halloween!

this immediately caught my attention because watsonville is a mere 30 miles from where my parents live in california, and where i was residing before moving to d.c. over the summer.  

not only did the homesickness kick in with the realization that these strawberries had come from only a near distance from my family, but it also raised my awareness of the environmental implications of the strawberries i was about to eat.

these strawberries had traveled nearly 2,900 miles from watsonville, ca to washington, d.c. in order for me to enjoy in my breakfast. 

you may be thinking, “while that is an awfully long distance for fruit to travel, why does this matter in terms of environmental sustainability?”

i’ll tell you why. 

the cross-country road trip my strawberries had taken to end up in my local trader joe’s for me to purchase and eat produces a ghastly amount of carbon emissions. 

“food miles” have been defined as the distance from where the food is produced to where it is consumed, according to carbon brief. studies have found that yearly, food miles produce 3bn tonnes of carbon emissions. 

if, like me, you aren’t a science-minded person and this metric doesn’t make sense to you, note that in the same study, the transport of fruit and vegetables was responsible for twice the amount of greenhouse gas than was emitted to actually grow them. 

while the implications of “food miles” are serious and concerning, there are ways we can all cut down our “food miles” and help the climate fight.

with that, here’s my guide to eating sustainably!

1. eat local

the first tactic to decrease the “food miles” of your produce is to eat locally grown foods. shopping at farmers’ markets is the number one way to do this. farmers’ markets are a great way to ensure that your produce has been grown locally and to support local farmers in your community. 

produce from farmers’ markets not only has fewer “food miles” but also tends to be more nutritious and flavorful than store-bought produce. due to the great distances that store-bought produce has to travel before it’s eaten, such produce tends to be harvested before peak ripeness and stored in coolers to preserve its freshness. however, this process strips the produce of its natural nutrients and flavor. 

shopping at farmers’ markets can also cut down on your single-use plastic consumption. instead of buying fruit in plastic clamshell containers, bring your reusable bags to the farmers’ market and buy produce straight from the producer.

for help finding farmers’ markets near you, use the usda’s local foods directory.

2. eat seasonally

the next tactic can be slightly more difficult. eating seasonally means eating fruits and vegetables during the months that they are in peak harvest.

while harvest months for produce vary widely from region to region, a rough guide to the foods that are in peak harvest in large swaths of the u.s. during the year is as follows:

summer

• melons
• cucumbers
• tomatoes
• eggplants
• peppers
• stone fruits
• summer squash
• herbs 

fall

• squashes
• root vegetables
• onions
• potatoes 

winter

• brussel sprouts
• citrus 
• pomegranates 
• squashes
• potatoes 
• beets 

spring

• asparagus 
• spinach 
• radishes
• rhubarb 
• scallions
• chives
• leeks 

for a complete list of seasonal foods that grow where you live, check out this seasonal food guide. 

eating seasonally goes hand-in-hand with eating locally. when shopping at the farmers’ market, be aware of what kinds of produce tend to be at the market during different times of the year. the produce at the farmers’ market is a direct indication of what foods are at peak harvest and what should be eaten during that season.

3. plan ahead

a big part of eating seasonally is planning ahead. if there are summer foods that you can’t go the winter months without, look to preserve them at their peak harvest to enjoy during the off-season. for instance, this could be done by freezing fresh berries during the summer and enjoying them during the fall and winter months. other techniques to preserve fresh fruits and vegetables include canning, pickling, fermenting, and dehydrating foods.

4. limit meat consumption

lastly, i’d be remiss to write a column about sustainable eating without mentioning reducing your consumption of meat. eating less meat reduces methane emissions that occur from the raising of livestock. according to the epa, a single cow produces between 154 to 264 pounds of methane gas per year. additionally, raising livestock consumes copious amounts of water in cleaning and processing the cattle, as well as watering the crops that the cattle eat.

thus, in order to have a more sustainable diet, people should try eating more plant-based meals rather than meat-based meals. for instance, protein substitutes for meat include beans and legumes, eggs, tofu, nuts, quinoa, grains, and mushrooms. these foods and more can provide you ample protein, without the need to consume meat. 

additionally, in 2024, there now exists a slew of meat alternatives that provide the nutrients and taste of meat, without the cardboard texture and lack of flavor that the meat alternatives of 10 years ago had. my favorite meat alternative is impossible meat, but there also exists beyond meat, gardein, and boca, to name a few.

now i’m not suggesting that people should quit eating meat cold turkey (turkey, get it?). instead, i’m hoping to share reasons why eating meat isn’t the best for the environment and suggest small ways you can make a difference. even just cutting down the frequency in which you eat meat, especially red meat, can go a long way in creating a more sustainable diet.

the big picture

for all these recommendations, assess the possibility and limitations for implementation into your own life. most importantly, we should all do what we can to adjust our eating habits to better protect the environment and fight climate change.

happy sustainable eating!

we received a number of interesting questions pertaining to sustainability. however, one question stood out to me: how do you compost in d.c.?

i chose this question not only because of planet forward’s location in the heart of washington, d.c. but also because it has been at the forefront of my mind recently.

i recently made the cross-country move from california to washington, d.c., to join the planet forward team as an editorial assistant and begin graduate school at george washington university.

the move to d.c. from california has come with numerous exciting and eye-opening moments. however, one of the first differences i noticed about my new home was the lack of green trash cans around the city to dispose of organic waste. 

growing up in california, it was the norm to have a green waste bin alongside your recycle and trash bins. for me, the green bin was the receptacle to throw lawn clippings, fallen leaves, and — after hopping on the compost train a few years ago — my food scraps.

to hype up my home state for a moment, in 2022, california began to require organic waste collection services for households and businesses in every city.

the convenience of composting in california is key to the state’s success. when every household is equipped with a green bin that’s taken from the curb weekly, there’s almost no excuse not to compost. 

in stark contrast, there exists a lack of government-provided composting services in d.c. this means people have to get crafty with how they compost in the district.

with this column entry, i hope to show you that while composting in d.c. may be more difficult than in other parts of the u.s., it doesn’t have to be an impossible task. 

why compost?

composting is important because it reduces the greenhouse gas emissions emitted when organic waste is sent to and decomposed in landfills. according to the epa, food waste accounts for 58% of landfill methane emissions. separating food waste from other trash allows bacteria to decompose the organic material and recycle the waste into nutrient-rich soil.

by redirecting food waste from landfills to the compost bin, we as students and individuals can do our part to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. 

what can you compost?

the foods that can be composted are:

• fruit and vegetable scraps
• eggshells
• bread
• dairy products
• meat
• bones
• soiled cardboard
• coffee grounds and tea bags

however, make sure that items commonly attached to produce, such as fruit stickers, rubber bands, plastic wrap, and other non-degradable items, are kept out of your compost.

composting around d.c.

the easiest way for those in d.c. to compost is by collecting compost at home and depositing it at one of the food-waste drop-off locations around the city. these drop-off locations are at designated farmers markets and are open the days of the market. check out this website for a complete list of where and when to drop off your compostable items. 

between your weekly trips to the compost drop-off locations, look into purchasing an at-home compost bin for smell and pest control. here’s a link to an affordable compost bin with a filter.

alternatively, you could withhold from purchasing a compost bin if you use a bucket with a lid and store it outside. the final option is to store your compost in the freezer, to reduce the smell and rotting of the food.

it’s crucial to keep an eye on your at-home compost to ensure it’s not taken over by mold or pests. check your at-home compost daily by noting the look, smell, and aura of the compost.

composting at your university

to see if your university offers composting bins and other options, a good place to start is by looking up your campus sustainability department. 

at george washington university, students have additional resources that aid their composting efforts. sustainable gw offers students free countertop-size compost bins for use in their dorms or off-campus residences. to request a compost bin through sustainable gw, complete this form.

additionally, gw now has a compost drop-off location on campus. gw students and community members alike, can drop off their compost at the smart food waste collection bin, located in kogan plaza. 

for those on gw’s campus, i recommend signing up for sustainable gw’s newsletter to stay up-to-date on the hours of operation for the kogan plaza collection bin.

the last option is for people willing to spend. if you have an extra $32 a month lying around, there are multiple compost pick-up services that will conveniently pick up your compost from your house. compost cab and compost crew serve the local d.c. area, but similar compost pick-up companies exist in other parts of the country.

the big picture

composting is a small act that makes a big difference in reducing our greenhouse gas emissions and fighting climate change. while in contrast to california and other compost-friendly states, d.c. may not be the easiest place to compost, that shouldn’t prevent us from trying. hopefully, the sources listed in this column provide a platform to kick-off your composting journey. 

however, as i’ve been a resident of d.c. for less than a month, i’m open to learning composting tips and tricks from more seasoned d.c.-ers (is that what we call ourselves?). please feel free to share your composting insights with us by dming us on instagram.

happy composting!