Our Love of Fresh Food in Plastic = Tajiguas Mess

This photo was taken at a local grocery store. I think it tells a powerful story about what’s happening at Tajiguas, the South County’s landfill. The plastic container invasion of produce and prepared foods has taken over the fresh food aisles in all grocery stores countywide and the state. (Trader Joe’s, the perennial favorite, is a huge offender — sorry TJs, love ya but gotta call you out.)

Is it a coincidence that the landfill has bloated since plastic containers for food were no longer recyclable in Santa Barbara (and pretty much everywhere) because China refused to take our absolutely obscene amount of plastic waste?

Yet fresh vegetables (even cucumbers, for god’s sake!), fruit, and an endless abundance of prepared foods (Indian street food like samosas) are now being sold in plastic containers that have nowhere else to go but in our kitchen trash cans and then the Tajiguas Landfill.

Hello, cardboard containers, we need you back.

I admit I’m not blameless. The convenience of buying “just-like homemade soup” at TJs, and not having to cut up a whole pineapple for smoothies is a huge timesaver for busy people.

But we must change our habits. People of Santa Barbara County, please wake up! This problem won’t go away unless we tell stores to stop this endless plastic packaging and we stop buying it.