Bag o'milk is better for the environment

by Shayna Glick, Posted Feb 7th 2008 @ 12:01PM

It's already happened in Canada. It's in the process of happening in Great Britain. I wonder if it will ever happen in the U.S.? I am referring to changing the packaging for milk containers. In Canada and England (anywhere else?), milk can now be purchased in more environmentally friendly bags rather than plastic bottles.

Currently, most of the bottles used for milk are tossed into the garbage rather than be recycled. Add to that they're made of a high density polyethylene, which can be recycled albeit mainly in China. The bags use 75% less plastic than do the bottles we're currently used to. Less packaging means less waste.

The milk bags are easily stored, too. You just have to get any kind of reusable pitcher, or similar container. When you bring home your fresh bag of milk, simply empty the contents into your pitcher and store it in the fridge.

The bag of milk is a neat new concept. I think that if we're serious about reducing our impact on this planet, this may be a good change to make. I know it seems kind of weird, but it's not that different from our current milk containers. Also, it's not a big sacrifice. I put lots of products into a permanent container once I get it home. So here's to the bag of milk: may you be universally accepted in the near future and stick around far into it.

[Via ColdMud]

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Filed Under: Business, Trends, Ingredients
Tags: bag of milk, BagOfMilk, dairy, environmentally friendly, EnvironmentallyFriendly, milk, plastic

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Reader comments (Page 1 of 2)

2-07-2008 @2:35PM Aaron said... I live in Canada and grew up with this. Its great, but it really sucks if you don't cut the tip right, and the stream of milk shanks all over the table and its kind of awkward drinking from the bag.
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2-07-2008 @12:19PM Nicole said... In Canada, you don't have to actually empty the milk bag into a pitcher.

There are reusable pitchers that are around the same size as the bag. You slip in the bag (so it fits in snugly) and snip off the corner (near the spout.)
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2-07-2008 @12:19PM tzurriz said... Oh, I think that would be a great idea!

In the meantime, Costco's milk cartons use less plastic than the grocery store type. It is a small step in the right direction.
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2-07-2008 @12:22PM Jared said... The bag-o-milk isn't a new concept at all. That is the primary way to buy milk in most of South America - and it's been that way for decades.

They have little pitcher-type containers that fit the small 1 liter bags to keep them upright in the fridge. I personally loved using the bags when I was down there in the late 80's.
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2-07-2008 @12:25PM Barry said... Awesome! You know someone is going make a "milk bag" in the shape of an udder. Or would that creep too many milk drinkers out?
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2-07-2008 @12:46PM Rachel said... Kemps sold milk in bags in the midwest back when i was growing up for a bit. my dad bought them because it was cheaper but it drove me up the wall because if you didnt snip the bag in just the right way milk would pour all over the counter rather than in the glass. needless to say i was very happy when they discontnued the product and my dad had to go back to cartons. now that i'm not eight though it might be a little easier to handle.
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2-07-2008 @12:52PM BaS said... We had pouches/bags of milk for a short time in elementary school and it was horrible. The cartons (papery and plastic)aren't the best thing in the world but at least they don't make the milk taste like you're drinking milky plastic like the soft containers do.
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2-07-2008 @1:13PM Pille said... We use milk bags in Estonia as well (have done for the last few decades, as a matter of fact). No need to decant the bag - we've got special 1litre jugs that snugly fit the bag :)
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2-07-2008 @1:18PM Bear Silber said... I would absolutely use this if it were available to me. I love this idea.
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2-07-2008 @1:46PM wez said... First place I saw them was in Quebec in the seventies.
We used to have them in Alberta here but they seem to have gone the way of the bottle.
I always thought it interesting that their were 3 bags of milk packaged together to make a 4 Litre unit. What I don't remember was having problems with dispensing or pouring as long as you have the proper milk bag pitcher with the requisite loop snipper.
I always found it interesting how much the cost of 4L of milk varies from province to prov.. From $3.70 to more than $8. I wonder if the mob has the fingers in the pitcher some where alone the line? Kickbacks?
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2-07-2008 @2:06PM Astin said... This is a NEW concept? They've been here in Canada for at least 30 years, if not longer. But hey, the States can't figure out a base-10 measurement system either, so I'm not surprised that this is exciting news.

And as has been stated, there are pitchers that the bag fits in snugly, and you just snip the corner. There are even ones with lids, to keep the milk fresher by limiting bacteria growth.

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2-07-2008 @2:19PM Heather said... Except that exposure to light destroys vitamin d (among others), so do they have to be clear plastic? I always buy my milk in cardboard cartons for this reason.

I thought Tetrapaks (like soy milk) would be the next step.
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2-07-2008 @2:25PM Deanna said... Not only is bagged milk "now available in Canada", as a 31-year old Canadian, I can't remember a time when bagged milk WASN'T available in canada. So this 'innovation' has been around for years.

Milk bag jugs, people. They're the next wave of the future, if today is 1979.
http://www.cadosphere.ca/en/by_category/kitchen/milk_bag_pitcher_apple.html
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2-07-2008 @2:47PM Dan said... These have been in the US for a while also. Kwik Trip a regional convenience store chain in the Midwest that has its own bakery and dairy has been selling bagged milk for a while. They give you the pitcher for free.

They also have orange juice and water in the same style bags.
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2-07-2008 @2:58PM jennywenny said... OK I'm confused. Surely a waxed cardboard carton is more environmentally friendly than plastic which will last for ever, not to mention the high number I imagine get punctured and wasted? I remember seeing these bags in india when I was there 10 years ago...
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2-07-2008 @3:43PM Dartssnake said... jennywenny,

According to most bunny-huggers,

paper=wood=trees=bad.

I agree, especially when plastics are recycleable and people use the service provided by most municipalities.
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2-07-2008 @3:55PM Rick Dobbs said... With my new business plan, I will be able to deliver this delicious milk via this fiber optic cable.
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2-07-2008 @4:38PM Brandy said... For those of you who buy bags o' milk currently - what's the rate of shreddage of bags on grocery carts & checkout lines? (And hence, the spillage of a great deal o' milk?)
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2-07-2008 @4:43PM vardene said... Milk-bags have neen available in Canada for decades. I think the issue now is polyetheline-recyclable vs. waxed-cardboard. Which is more energy-effici9ent? Less noxious?

Pe
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