Elephant Box is one of the best brands of reusable lunch boxes, these are well-made to last you years, roomy enough for all your eats and snacks, and in a wide choice of designs, whether you prefer a sandwich on its own or with dips and soups. One investment saves wasteful purchase of disposable clingfilm sandwich bags (the nurdles end up in our seas, which are eaten by marine creatures who think they are fish food).
Stainless steel straws don’t flex, so avoid for children/dexterity issues or being on the move. Read more on keeping people & pets safe in the kitchen. Never feed stale, mouldy or crusty bread to garden birds or wildfowl, as it can choke or harm. Nor buttered leftovers, as fat smears on feathers, affecting waterproofing/insulation.
The range is mostly stainless steel, from small lunch pots to large boxes with clip lids, and there is also a range of small stylish toughened glass bowls with leakproof stainless steel lids and removable silicone sleeves for easy handling. Unlike plastic, these won’t stain with food and are easy to clean by hand or in the dishwasher (obviously don’t put metal in the microwave, but they are freezer-safe.
The soft silicone lids nest together when not in use, and the boxes are easy to open and close for children. Responsibly-made in China, they are sold with a 15-year gurarantee and a portion of sales benefit environmental nonprofits.
You can also buy a spork to eat your lunch with, which is sold in a handy cork carry sleeve (no trees are cut down to strip cork bark from trees).
And if you fancy, you can invest in a matching stainless steel reusable water bottle that holds just over 1 litre, with no paint or plastic, and designed to last a lifetime. It features a handy carry loop and is easy to fill and clean (don’t drink hot liquids direct from the wide mouth).
why switch from clingfilm?
Clingfilm is a very thin plastic that often falls apart (so bits get stuck to food you’re sealing) and the boxes usually have a cutting edge that doesn’t work that well. It’s also wasteful and expensive. Originally made from PVC PVC (polyvinyl chlorine), most clingfilm is now made from LDPE (low-density polyethylene) which is not good either and doesn’t stick well. It was invented (by accident) back in the 1930s by someone trying to remove something from a lab vial, it’s now been around for almost 100 years.
The average family uses 26 rolls of clingfilm a year, but it’s made by melting tiny plastic pellets (nurdles) that often drop on the factory floor and end up in the sea (it’s estimated 50 million nurdles end up in oceans each year). These look like fish eggs to marine creatures, who end up eating them (so do you, if you eat fish).