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Gaggles of pint-sized tykes have marched back to school toting home madelunches in their sporty new backpacks But whatrsquos inside those lunchboxes maybe a little different than you remember

As environmental awareness grows and more schools pursue zero waste goalsyou can kiss those brown paper sacks and Ziploc bags goodbye unless you wantyour kids to get shamed about their anti-eco lunches Trust us we have beenthere

Lifestyle

School lunches How to pack an ecolunchbox for your kidFrom Bumkins to vegan backpacks how to be eco-friendly

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Bumkins reusable snack bags (Bumkins)

By KAREN DSOUZA | kdsouzabayareanewsgroupcom | Bay Area News GroupPUBLISHED August 28 2017 at 1210 pm | UPDATED September 6 2017 at 1004 am

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This is a quick and handy cheatsheet for any parent who has had to survive theirkid coming home in tears on Earth Day when their lunch didnrsquot pass inspectionbecause they had a granola bar in its wrapper and grapes in plastic containers(heaven forfend)

If you want to bone up on the subject you should can also check out Cal Recycleand Waste Free Lunches which have exhaustive details on how parents andschools can cut down on waste But if yoursquore short on time here is a breezyguide to give the old lunchbox an eco makeover

Letrsquos begin with banishing the plastic baggies of yore One alternative is areusable eco-friendly bag Bumkins makes sturdy ones of recycled materials thatcome in a variety of sizes and a slew of cheerful patterns including owls anddinosaurs They are dishwasher safe so you donrsquot have to dread those inevitablefood explosions Go with the little ones ($795 for two) for small recess-worthysnacks

Stainless steel containers with silicone lids from ECOlunchbox (ECOlunchbox)

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Next up we trade away the beloved plastic tubs for stainless steel lunchcontainers Admittedly plastic containers are reusable but a lot of schools frownon plastic and many parents are concerned about potential chemicals that leachinto food in general and exposure to phthalates which have been related toendocrine disruption in general

Our favorite pick in this category comes from ECOlunchbox which offers adizzying array of shapes and sizes in its Bento Box line Snacks of grapes orcrackers t inside a mini Seal Cup ($999) A full sandwich or a piece of pizzatucks nicely inside the Splash Box ($2299) All of them come with silicone lids(no plastic) that are super easy for kids to open and leak proof If you want tocheck them out in person some Container Store Target and Bed Bath andBeyond stores carry them

As for utensils ditch the plastic ones and try a stainless spork like the nicelyrounded one from ECOlunchbox ($550) or just pack some old silverware fromhome Make sure itrsquos not a set yoursquore attached to because not everything makesits way home

The same goes for napkins Switching to cloth napkins just requires addingthem to the weekly laundry

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Also consider going with a thermos thatrsquos plastic free You canrsquot switch to glassfor obvious reasons but you can sip on the Scout collection from EcoVessel Thisfancy vacuum-insulated sippy cup has no plastic no BPA and no liners ($1695)Itrsquos made from stainless steel with a silicone spout and a silicone straw Youshould handwash it Get a feel for these bottles at Home Depot or Kohlrsquos

You also can check out the nifty kiddo collection at Greenrsquos Your Color with itstriple-insulated water bottles bedecked with kittens dinos or owls Itrsquos BPA freeand you donrsquot have to worry about a toxic inner liner ($35)

For extra green bonus points you can top off your back to school ensemble witha vegan backpack Seriously The reversible Chooze ($4000) backpack (trydonuts on one side cupcakes on the other) allows you to switch sides when onegets grungy Thatrsquos environmentally sound and thrifty too

Stainless steel lunch boxes with silicone lids from ECOlunchbox (ECOlunchbox)

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Karen DSouza Karen DSouza is the theater critic for the Mercury News andthe Bay Area News Group papers She is a three-time Pulitzer juror a formerUSCGetty Arts Journalism Fellow and a longtime member of the GlickmanDrama Jury and the American Theatre Critics Association She has a MastersDegree in Journalism from UC Berkeley She is a Twitter addict(KarenDSouza4) a fangirl and a mommy and her writings have appeared inthe Los Angeles Times Miami Herald the San Francisco Chronicle andAmerican Theatre Magazine

Follow Karen DSouza Dsouzatheaterpage Follow Karen DSouza KarenDSouza4