Once before, I’ve talked about certain habits I follow in order to save money. If you’re too lazy to follow the link, I’m speaking about my driving habits that save money (up to 32 MPG Now!), but in the end help the environment just a bit. After Global Warming Week, I noticed other habits I picked up to save money, but help the environment too. Today we’re going to look at how much money and environment I save packing my lunch every day!
Boring!! Yeah? Well personal finance is boring but you’re still reading my blog every day. Get over it.
So we all know its easy to save hundreds by packing your lunch every day. My lunch cost is between $0.75 and $3.00 a day depending on what I bring. The typical lunch, which is what I eat most of the time costs me about $1.25. But there are other costs we don’t include. What do I bring my lunch in? Two items – my veggies and sandwich travel in Gladware containers. Those containers cost money.
Let’s look at the cost of those containers vs sandwich bags, my previous carrier of choice. After a trip to the local grocery store, I saw a package of 5 such containers for $3.00. A per container cost to me is thus 60 cents. I compared that to the baggies that were $3.34 for 100 and thus 3 cents each (rounded). Gladware is obviously more expensive, but also reusable. Baggies are reusable but break down, stretch, and are difficult to clean.
These containers can last for years with repeated use, but to explain the math lets just say I can get 30 days out of them. That means each use of the container costs me 2 cents. The baggies cost me 3 cents for each use as they only last a day (I generally throw them away). Every day I’m saving a penny per item, which isn’t much, until you consider the other factors.
I’ve got containers from 5 years ago that I still use. These durable little guys just don’t die. So I’m saving a lot more than just a penny each day. But there is also the environmental impact. I stated in my summary of Global Warming Week that I believed our impact on the world is less significant than extremists lead on. But that doesn’t justify increasing my garbage output. Saving space in landfills is better for everyone. Reusing plastic items is better for everyone (except maybe the Gladware folks). I do this to save money, but sparing the environment a few pounds of plastic every year is a good thing too.
 By The Weakonomist |
The Weakonomist is the founder of Weakonomics. Clicking the picture of the puppy will tell you more about him. If you like what you're reading consider subscribing to the blog, following him on Twitter, and checking out the related posts below. Please consider a donation if you really enjoy Weakonomics. |
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