This is where the plastic impacts our health the most. This is also where it is easiest to eliminate plastic with a little bit of effort and barely any habit change. Let’s take a look at all the plastic products in the kitchen and how we can start replacing them with plastic-free alternatives to eventually reach a plastic-free kitchen:
Plastic Product in The Kitchen | Plastic-Free Alternative | Ease of Replacement (Habit change) | Ease of Replacement (Availability) |
Jars & Containers | Glass or Metal Jars | Easy | Easy |
Water Bottles | Pots (Matkas), Bottles: Glass or Metal (especially copper) | Easy | Easy |
Plates (esp if Melamine) | Metal, Toughened Glass (Like Corelle etc.), Wooden (Bamboo etc.) | Easy | Easy |
Ladles and Cutlery | Steel, Bamboo/ Wooden | Easy | Easy |
Trays | Steel, Bamboo/ Wooden | Easy | Easy |
Sieve | Metal | Easy | Easy |
Lunch Boxes | Metal | Easy | Easy |
Cling Film / Cling Wrap/ Shrink Wrap | Lids for Covering; Lunch boxes for packing food; Reusable Silicone Wrap for air-tight seals if needed | Easy | Easy |
Straws | Bamboo Straws (Buy Here) | Easy | Easy |
Bins | Metal | Easy | Easy |
Garbage Bags (even if they say biodegradable/ compostable) | No bin liners. Wash the bin. Newspaper lining is also a good option. | Easy | Easy |
Plastic Bags for Fruits, Vegetables etc. | Reusable Bags (Cotton, Jute, Canvas) | Easy | Easy |
Tea Bags | Brewed tea from loose tea leaves | Easy | Easy |
Microwave Utensils | Glass or Ceramic | Easy | Easy |
Soap Trays | Bamboo, metal, ceramic or glass | Easy | Easy |
Dishwashing Scrubber | Metal scrubber inside old cotton socks or simply the old cotton socks | Easy to Moderate | Easy |
Gloves for cleaning | Natural Latex Gloves or Cotton Gloves | Easy to Moderate | Easy to Moderate |
Cleaning Aids: Separate for shelf; utensils; Glass surfaces | Same cleaning aid for all - Minimise the assortment as much as possible | Easy to Moderate | Easy |
Got something to add to our list that we have missed? Click here to submit your thoughts and ideas.
While a lot of plastic products in the bathroom seem like they don’t have another option, depending on the amount of effort you wish to put in to go plastic-free, there are options from the very easy switches to the harder ones as listed below:
Plastic Product in The Bathroom | Plastic-Free Alternative | Ease of Replacement (Habit change) | Ease of Replacement (Availability) |
Toothbrush | Bamboo Toothbrush (Click here to buy now) | Easy | Easy |
Soap | Natural or Organic Soap without Plastic Packaging (Check the list here) | Easy | Easy |
Buckets and Mugs | Replace with metal or Minimise the number of buckets/ mugs used | Easy | Easy |
Soap Tray | Bamboo, metal, ceramic or glass | Easy | Easy |
Small Bottles: Oil, Shampoo, Conditioner, Shower Gel, Lotion etc. | Big Bottles - buy the biggest size to reduce the amount of plastic packaging TIP: Reuse your small bottles for travel by refilling from the bigger ones | Easy | Easy |
Sachets: Shampoo, Conditioners, Creams etc. | Buy big bottles. Use smaller bottles as refill packs. | Easy | Easy |
Combs and Hairbrush | Wooden Combs; Wooden Panel Hairbrush | Easy | Easy |
Toothpaste, Facewash, Shampoo, other similar products with Microbeads | Alternatives without shiny little beads - these are plastic micro-beads that will go straight into water circulation so its best to not use products with these ingredients - the simpler the products, the better. Click here for a list of products with micro-beads | Easy | Easy |
Loofah | Natural Fibres based or use no loofahs | Easy | Easy |
Disposable Razors | Reusable Metal Razors | Easy | Easy |
Bathroom Stools | Wooden | Easy | Easy |
Cleaning Aids: Floor Wipers | Metal Wipers (Foam is still there though) OR Use Cotton Rags for cleaning | Easy to Moderate | Easy |
Products in Tubes: Facewash, Creams etc. | Bigger Packs to reduce plastic (1 tube instead of multiple). Products in Glass Bottles or Eco-friendly packaging (List available here) | Easy to Moderate | Easy to Moderate |
Bottles of Oil, Shampoo, Conditioner, Shower Gel, Lotion etc | Products in Glass Bottles or Eco-friendly packaging (List available here) | Moderate | Moderate |
Toothpaste | Natural Option: Neem Sticks (Daatun), Other options: Eco-friendly toothpastes in glass jars (List available here) | Moderate to Tough | Moderate to Tough |
Mirror Cabinets Or other bathroom shelves | Glass, Metal, Wooden, Ceramic | Tough | Easy |
Bath Toys for kids | Remove or use as less as possible due to health effects as well | Easy | Easy |
Got something to add to our list that we have missed? Click here
The list of plastic products at home is long but by now, you would realise you can look at the plastic product in your house and think of a possible replacement along with the ease of adopting that replacement. Here are some suggestions for common plastic items in the rest of the house beyond your kitchen and bathroom
Plastic Product in Living Rooms, Bedrooms etc. | Plastic-Free Alternative | Ease of Replacement (Habit change) | Ease of Replacement (Availability) |
Plastic Chairs/ Tables | Wooden/ Bamboo/ Metal | Easy | Easy |
Plastic Hangers | Wooden/ Metal | Easy | Easy |
Plastic Shelves | Wooden/ Bamboo/ Metal | Easy | Easy |
Table Mats/ Covers | Cotton/Cloth/Bamboo Table mats | Easy | Easy |
Lamps | Metal/ Ceramic/ Bamboo/ Wooden | Easy | Easy |
Synthetic Drapes/ Curtains | Cotton/ Natural Fibres like Silk | Easy | Easy |
Decorations | Wooden/ Glass/ Ceramic/ Metal | Easy | Easy |
Toys | Eco-friendly toys - no plastic leeching hazard for kids either | Easy to Moderate | Easy to Moderate |
Got something to add to our list that we have missed? Click here
While most of the products in the garden take us closer to nature, there are a few plastic products that sneak in. It is quite easy to opt for more eco-friendly options for the same. Having said that, there are also a lot of ways of reusing old plastic products in your garden instead of buying new plastic. Take a look at our Reuse section for some ideas.
Plastic Product in the Garden/ Balcony | Plastic-Free Alternative | Ease of Replacement (Habit change) | Ease of Replacement (Availability) |
Pots for Plants | Clay, Stone | Easy | Easy |
Trays below Pots for Plants | Metal | Easy | Easy |
Gardening Tools | Metal/ Wood | Easy | Easy |
Chairs/ Tables | Wood/ Bamboo/ Metal/ Cane | Easy | Easy |
Support for Plants (Sticks etc.) | Bamboo/ Wooden | Easy | Easy |
Ropes | Jute Ropes | Easy | Easy |
Got something to add to our list that we have missed? Click here
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