Minnesota has enacted the “Toxic Free Kids Act,” which will ban bisphenol-A (BPA) in sippy cups and baby bottles. Minnesota joins Suffolk County, New York, which banned BPA earlier this year. Other states and counties, as well as the federal government, are considering bans on the potentially dangerous chemical, which has been linked to all sorts of adverse health effects. The Minnesota ban goes into effect in 2011. (Photo: tiffanywashko)
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Careful: Lean Cuisine May Contain Random Pieces Of Plastic
By 12.5.08
She contacted Nestle, the company that makes Lean Cuisine, and they offered her some coupons for more Lean Cuisine. She’s understandably reluctant and would prefer a refund.
Lean Cuisine Recalls Chicken Meals For Containing Plastic Pieces
By 11.19.08
Lean Cuisine is recalling 900,000 pounds of its entrees after “several consumers” reported finding blue plastic in the product. If you have the Pesto Chicken with Bow Tie Pasta, the Chicken Mediterranean or the Chicken Tuscan varieties, here are the UPC and production codes of the affected batches.
Will New Square Milk Jugs At Wal-Mart, Costco Save The Planet? Or Spill Your Milk?
By 6.30.08 — Updated: 11.1.12
Wal-Mart and Costco have something new they’d like you to try— a square milk jug. The NYT says the new square jugs “are cheaper to ship and better for the environment, the milk is fresher when it arrives in stores, and it costs less.” So what’s the catch? Apparently, while the new jugs are helping cut costs, they kind of suck at pouring milk.
Woman Sues Playtex Over Bisphenol-A
By 5.29.08
A woman in Arkansas has filed a federal lawsuit against Playtex Products over their use of BPA in plastic baby bottles, claiming that the company “failed to adequately disclose that its plastic bottle products are formulated using BPA,” according to MSNBC. The suit is seeking class action status, which would make it the second BPA-related class action lawsuit after the one in California against Nalge Nunc International (the makers of Nalgene bottles)—although the chemical is still not classified as toxic in the U.S.
Canada May Become First Country To Classify BPA Toxic
By 4.16.08
Canada is about to become the first country to declare bisphenol-a (BPA)—used in baby bottles, drink containers, and as a liner in cans—a toxic chemical, reports the New York Times. An anonymous source has said that the work by Canada’s chemical review program to list BPA as a toxic chemical “was complete and was recently endorsed by a panel of outside scientists.” The announcement is expected any time between today and the end of May.
Glass Baby Bottles Hit The Market To Answer Concerned Parents' Fears Of Plastic
By 2.16.08
Earlier this month, several consumer groups announced that heated plastic baby bottles leach bisphenol A “in amounts that were within the range shown to cause harm in animal studies.” Now a reader writes in to tell us that companies are already starting to respond to the issue with announcements that they’ll be releasing glass bottles in addition to plastic versions.
Whole Foods Will Eliminate Plastic Bags, Says "Bring Your Own"
By 1.22.08
Whole Foods says that by Earth Day 2008 they will be eliminating plastic bags and instead offer only paper bags or reusable bags made from recycled plastic bottles for $0.99.
Macy's Doesn't Care If You Want To Save The Planet, Forces You To Take A Plastic Bag
By 1.5.08
Some people would rather not take a plastic bag if they don’t need one, ourselves included, because a) enough with the plastic bags already b) it’s wasteful and bad for the planet to take plastic bags when you really blatantly don’t need or want them.
By 9.17.07
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London Councils is considering either banning or placing a tax on plastic shopping bags to help curb landfill waste. They say London is “facing a landfill problem because Londoners annually use 1.6 billion bags, which take 400 years to decompose.”
How To: Make A Plastic Bag Keeper
By 4.4.07
As you get them, shove bags in the top hole; as you need them, pull them out of the bottom hole. (I fit 15 medium-sized bags in my bottle.) Having the plastic bags at hand-my keeper will be hanging by my back door-should encourage reusing them. Plus, they look a lot neater packed in that bottle.
Nifty! We think we’ll put ours under the bathroom sink because we use our Target bags as bathroom garbage bags. —MEGHANN MARCO
San Francisco Modifies The Age-Old Question: Paper Or Plastic?
By 4.1.07
San Francisco’s Board of Supervisors voted 10-1 to ban the use of non-biodegradable plastic bags; supermarkets across the city will retrain their employees to ask: paper or biodegradable plastic?
The Plastic Bag Reduction Ordinance, written by Supervisor Ross Mirkarimi and Co., sponsored by six other supervisors, gives major supermarket chains with more than $2 million in annual sales six months to make the switch to biodegradable bags. Pharmacies and retailers with at least five locations have one year. Violators face fines of up to $500.
Supermarkets have let economics guide their choice between paper and plastic. Paper bags cost four cents, while plastic bags cost a penny. The largest San Francisco supermarket hands out 125 million plastic bags each year.
What Is The Definition of "Real Kraft Cheese"?
By 2.5.07
Kraft, like many food makers, often walks a fine line with its marketing, testing the limits of federal labeling regulations that are often vague or confusing.
