Tuesday, June 2

Cheesed off

Since the weather turned and outside is no longer enticing, the bloke and I pack up the bean and go to market every Tuesday to do the weekly shop and have lunch together. For the last few weeks i have been taking along containers to bring home the cheese. Plastic itself doesnt bother me unless its leaching BPA into my system or its single use packaging. Im often compromised with plastic vs glass bottles as I have read that, as usual, 'it depends' on what you're purchasing as sometimes the glass bottle is shipped in from whoop whoop and the energy consumed making it nd getting it to you in glass is way greater than the energy used to get the plastic made, transport the plastic to you and then recycle the plastic. 'It depends'. Sigh

So today I front up to a new cheese shop, ask the woman behind the counter for some feta cheese and ask her please can I use my own container. Sure, its no problem she says and then proceeds to reach over and rip off a plastic bag from the roll beside the counter. I stand there quite dumbfounded, watching while she uses the bag as a glove to pluck some feta from its brine bath and to cup it on the scales. The feta is being tipped from the plastic bag into my cheese box when i finally speak up.

Dont people get it! I tell her that i may as well take the cheese in the bag NOW because my guess is the bags going to be tossed, right? Right. If i take it at least i can reuse it.

No tongs for cheese removal at that cheese stall! Apparently it may crumble the edge of the feta... gasp! hence the use of bags for picking up the cheeses and then for holding the cheeses. If i return to that stall Im gonna have to give a key note address before i hand over the box!

4 comments:

Unknown said...

Hi Kel, all the more reason to make it yourself. At least you can reuse the milk carton as a scoop or some such thing!

Gav

Pip said...

After reading your Stretch it challenge post, I was thinking about taking a container with me, then I thought but they will still use a plastic bag to pick it up. Off the top of my head I can't think of any place that uses tongs (but I will be looking now) I think most places use a plastic bag because of worries about cross-contamination with tongs and possibly they don't want to buy a whole lot of tongs, and then have to wash them at the end of the day, so in the end it all becomes too hard for them. We'll just have to keep looking for tong users.
Pip

Kelly said...

Gavin - yeah, i know. Time and plannning- its a constant problem ( see your up till 3 am post!) i dont mind the plastic milk carton- its at least recyclable, but im definitely interested in getting some more complex cheeses under my belt.

Pip- you're way ahead girl! the stupormarkets use tongs so i reckon why cant they! anyway, i figured our interaction may have just twigged something for her and she masy ask next time someone /me asks for this again

Kale for Sale said...

That's too funny. Not really but it's happened to me too and there's nothing to be done in the moment. I've declined a bag and had them toss it in the trash instead, declined a plastic lid, swoosh, it's in the garbage. Bought chicken in my own bowl and they stick the price on a piece of plastic. I speak up when I think I'll be heard and speak sooner when I'm on top of things. And the change is happening little by little. Right?

Hello, how are you?

Hello. It's been a while. 5 years. Where did that time go? Reflecting back, I can't remember why I stopped blogging. Perhaps l...