(photo: http://orlandobulletin.com/orlando-fl/costco-wholesale/)
So I was walking through Costco in Orem, Utah with
my sister Sarah while she was grocery shopping for her family. Urban Utah
is mostly comprised of suburbs and chain stores. In Orem, it is harder to
find a non-chain store than it is to find a bar. If you've been to Utah, you
know what I mean.
As we peruse the aisles of Costco, noticing all the needless plastic. I smirked to my sister, "The only product requirement Costco has, is that the product must be wrapped in plastic".
My sister replied, "No, I really don't think so." Then she paused, glanced around the store (cue: crickets), then replied "Yeah, okay, maybe." I agreed with a nod.
As much as I love Costco and their free samples; I have realized in my recent plastic-less days that Costco is a vault of plastic.
Take this into Consideration:
-You need a plastic card to get in.
-The shelves are stacked three stories high with crated goods, wrapped in so much plastic they could float a sinker tank.
-A box of cold medicine will be wrapped in a case of plastic so over sized that it could also fit a box of Costco pizza in it.
-Even plastic items, such as plastic jars of applesauce, will be wrapped with additional plastic labeling and strapped to other plastic jars of applesauce with additional scarves of plastic.
Even sampling food was out of the option because the paper cup sample had little plastic spoons in each sample. (But I made it work, I stole a sample before the sample liaison spooned it.)
It was ironic, telling my sister how I have managed to live without buying plastic this year, while walking between the vast plastic parapets of Costco. But the point is that I have lived without buying plastic and that although so many people subscribe to the plastic way of life, I am forging a way that proves that plastic consumption is not necessary for survival and that there is a way to live plastic-free and be happy. Part of that life is not shopping at Costco.
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