Ditch The Disposables: The Return Of The Hummus

A few days ago, I wrote to Lisa's Hummus company, to complain about their plastic packaging, which cannot be recycled in my city.

I received the following response:

Hi Leanne,
I received your complaint regarding the plastic we use in Lisa’s Hummus.

I certainly take your point and I am continually searching for alternatives as I agree with you wholeheartedly.

However there just isn’t anything feasible yet – unless we pack product in Glass which would effectively kill sales and increase sales in competitors who are packed in Plastic.

In my opinion consumers need to make a sea change in their purchasing patterns so that manufacturers of plastic and products like ours are forced to change.

Likewise all councils need to take a national approach in recycling – as our plastic is the most common and can be recycled by most councils.
 
I hope this clarifies our position and you continue to support our business.
 
 
Kind Regards,

They were very quick to respond to my email - I received this response within 24 hours. Great stuff.

I also think they have a valid point. Maybe it is more expensive to package in glass. And glass is heavier, which would certainly add to shipping costs.

However, once again we see a company passing the buck. Instead of taking the opportunity to lead the way, they're waiting for consumers to demand change.

Lisa's Hummus is a fantastic product. Their hummus is delicious - it's really top of the line stuff, with no fillers or rubbish in it. That's why we've been buying it.

I think it is a shame that a company that has led the way in producing such a healthy and tasty food doesn't seem keen to also lead the way in sustainable packaging.

Whose responsibility - consumers, companies, governments?

Everyone is passing the buck.

• Consumers are blaming companies for not selling sustainable products. We grumble that you can't buy stuff that isn't packaged in plastic.
  
  
• Companies blame consumers and say that consumers need to "make a sea change in their purchasing patterns".
  
  
• Governments are silent on the matter. If they do anything, they remove products from sale long after the damage has been done.
  

I've talked about cradle-to-grave sustainability before, and I think this is the key to the problem.

We need to rethink the way products are packaged. Recycling isn't a solution, if the end result, even after hundreds of uses, is landfill.

Recycling just uses energy (often unsustainably sourced) to reform the product packaging, and lets people believe they're living/buying a sustainable product, yet still creates a product that is wasteful and often does not degrade safely in the environment.

I think an ideal solution would be re-usable, standard-sized packaging that has a deposit on it and is collected, cleaned and re-filled. Just like milk bottles were used, before the "advancement" to milk cartons and plastic bottles.

What should the consumer do?

I don't have the right to tell anyone else what to do, so I won't.

But we're going to reduce our use of plastic packaged products, with the goal of eliminating our use altogether. We'll have slip-ups I'm sure, but that is our goal.

Over the coming weeks/months/years, I'll be writing to the companies whose products I use, and asking them to switch to more sustainable packaging. I'm just one voice, but if others also take a stand, our voices will become a shout that will be noticed.

Together we can become the "sea change" that Lisa's Hummus is talking about.

And part of my solution will be grabbing the yummy recipes that people have posted in the "comments" section of this blog (thanks!), posting them as independent posts so everyone can enjoy them, and making my own hummus from now on.


--
Cluttercut - Be the change