The Accidental Smallholder Forum
Food & crafts => Food processing => Topic started by: docsal on January 22, 2018, 01:01:36 pm
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Does anyone have any ideas for freezer packaging other than plastics? I bought a vacuum packer for our home cured bacon but wondered if there were more environmentally-friendly ways of packing stuff for the freezer???
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good question, I'd be interested too
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Nope, I haven't come across anything other than plastic bags... I do anything cooked in plastic tubs, and those are of course re-used, but most fruit, veg and meat goes into bags....
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I cringe every time I use one! I'm trying to be as environmentally friendly by making and freezing my own food, then I get a plastic bag out......
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The thing that grips me most is the bale wrap used for the haylage, expensive to put on and then useless afterwards and then costs to dispose of if not burnt :'(
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I freeze leftovers in some great pyrex style dishes that my mum got me. They have plastic lids and can go in freezer, oven, microwave and dishwasher. Unfortunately raw meat goes in plastic bags, as do the bags and bags of fruit I store because I just can't process it as quick as it comes in.
I used to re-use the chinese takeaway tubs but I found those shattered easily. Also keen to hear any non-plastic solutions people have.
Dans
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Y' know what? I don't feel guilty about this at all. Yes by all means reduce the unnecessary plastic wrapping of produce just for the sake it when any other form of wrapping, or no wrapping would work. But plastic does have some special properties and the ability to clean it and repeatability freeze and thaw it makes it a very special commodity when used properly. The problem isn't use of plastic, it is mis use and careless disposal.
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Back in the '50s we didn't have disposable polythene bags, nor did we have domestic freezers. The two seem to have arisen hand in hand. We did have cellophane, which became brittle and tore easily, so no use for freezing.
I use a mix of polythene bags and plastic tubs in the freezer now. The tubs last for years and can be re-used many times then I think they can be recycled afterwards (I haven't thrown any out yet). With bags, I tend to re-purpose in that I'll use them to dispose of rubbish, or old soup bones or whatever. When I've finished with them I always split the handles and tie the bags into a tight knot several times, so they don't blow around in the air from a tip, or have loops that wrap around birds' legs - I do that with all plastic wrapping.
The problem I think is not the using of plastic wrap in a situation where it's perfect eg the freezer, but that we don't have a way to recycle plastic thin sheeting, bags etc (and old flower pots). So better recycling, and uses for the products of recycling are the answer our techno wizards need to work towards, asap.
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Rupert- I use binder twine to grow tomatoes cucumbers up on the poly tunnel. The trick is to store it in bags, and when someone says " I could use some of that" give them a bag full :roflanim: my farmer friend says that he couldn't run his farm without it
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Rupert- I use binder twine to grow tomatoes cucumbers up on the poly tunnel. The trick is to store it in bags, and when someone says " I could use some of that" give them a bag full :roflanim: my farmer friend says that he couldn't run his farm without it
We use sisal twine which eventually rots. It is the only twine our ancient baler will use, but is so much better than having polyprop twine lurking about. In every picture of wild birds and sea creatures tangled in something, there is always polyprop twine or rope - horrible stuff.
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[member=4333]Fleecewife[/member] do you have a link to the type of tubs you use? Or a description? Even my thicker plastic ones seem to last only a couple years.
I saw some reusable silicon pouches on Facebook the other day that caught my interest. Should work the same as zip lock bags but can be washed.
Dans
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Rupert- I use binder twine to grow tomatoes cucumbers up on the poly tunnel. The trick is to store it in bags, and when someone says " I could use some of that" give them a bag full :roflanim: my farmer friend says that he couldn't run his farm without it
We use sisal twine which eventually rots. It is the only twine our ancient baler will use, but is so much better than having polyprop twine lurking about. In every picture of wild birds and sea creatures tangled in something, there is always polyprop twine or rope - horrible stuff.
I was refering to the net wrap and the 6 layer stretch bale wrap we use for the haylage :)
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Rupert- I use binder twine to grow tomatoes cucumbers up on the poly tunnel. The trick is to store it in bags, and when someone says " I could use some of that" give them a bag full :roflanim: my farmer friend says that he couldn't run his farm without it
We use sisal twine which eventually rots. It is the only twine our ancient baler will use, but is so much better than having polyprop twine lurking about. In every picture of wild birds and sea creatures tangled in something, there is always polyprop twine or rope - horrible stuff.
I was refering to the net wrap and the 6 layer stretch bale wrap we use for the haylage :)
Oh right, is that what binder twine is now? Before we had a combine harvester when I was a child, we had a binder, which cut and bunched and tied cut corn, which was then stooked, left to finish in the wind then carted and stacked. Later it was winnowed. The string used to tie the bundles was called binder twine, now baler twine.
The stuff round big bales is another pet hate, designed to catch on animal and bird feet, in machines and never to disappear.
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Hi Dans
I just found these, made of rice husks - interesting.
https://www.fruugo.co.uk/husk-full-set-4-i-n1-of-round-storage/p-15674001-33662532?gclid=EAIaIQobChMIu_zyhZbv2AIVCkAbCh084gUYEAQYFCABEgJ-OPD_BwE (https://www.fruugo.co.uk/husk-full-set-4-i-n1-of-round-storage/p-15674001-33662532?gclid=EAIaIQobChMIu_zyhZbv2AIVCkAbCh084gUYEAQYFCABEgJ-OPD_BwE)
Collapsible silicone containers:
hhttps://www.ebay.co.uk/i/192330135496?chn=ps&adgroupid=48716125379&rlsatarget=pla-381910292621&abcId=1129946&adtype=pla&merchantid=107365930&poi=&googleloc=1007346&device=c&campaignid=974960635&crdt=0 (https://www.ebay.co.uk/i/192330135496?chn=ps&adgroupid=48716125379&rlsatarget=pla-381910292621&abcId=1129946&adtype=pla&merchantid=107365930&poi=&googleloc=1007346&device=c&campaignid=974960635&crdt=0)
I think these are the bags you are referring to - I use them for soups, fruit and other liquid foods: Reusable Silicone Food Storage Bag on Amazon (couldn't get a URL - I'm not sure what that 'ember' bit is but I can't get rid of it)
Also on Amazon are glass storage containers for freezers etc.The containers I use at the moment are multipacks from Lakeland.
Sorry this is a messy post - I've tried sorting the fonts but doesn't work.
So it looks as if there are some viable alternatives to plastics and polyprop for the freezer. They are more expensive but reuseable. Once my tubs break I shall certainly be looking into those. Thanks for mentioning silicone Dans. I wonder if it also has some drawbacks?
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If you look at the Wischenfleders website they sell an Italian vac pack & heat sealer that also has a vacuum system of using recycled lidded jars fitted with a special multi use sealing plug to hold the vacuum .
I have considered using some of my Weck jars , drilling . boring the lids with the right sized plug hole using an eBay diamond hole cutter set and a Weck sealing ring
I'll still be using the plastic embossed bags for things though .
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The silicone reusable zip bags look interesting for leftovers, maybe some veg and stuff.
Unfortunately if your vac packing a whole sheep/cow/pig for the freezer it would be extremely expensive to buy reusable containers. I'm just not sure there is anything on the market at the moment.
Things are changing though, lots of interesting things coming out of places like Indonesia, like plastic bags make from yucca.
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I suddenly had a thought :idea: in the middle of the night. Is silicone recyclable, or biodegradable? So far I have discovered that it's not either of those things. It seems to be a bit like glass, except it can't even be melted down for re-use. I need to do some research to see how true that is, but if it is, then it sounds as if silicone is worse than plastic.
Does anyone have any knowledge on this point?
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That's the one thing that has stopped me buying the pouches, I wasn't sure about the afterlife of silicone or how ecofriendly it is to produce. A lot of things seem to be made from food or medical grade silicone now, including alternatives to clingfilm.
The one thing that silicone has that plastic doesn't is just how reusable it is. We have a couple of baking moulds and a pair of oven gloves and they have really lasted well. It doesn't tear or crack or burn and is really easy to clean. So even if it is harder to dispose you may have less need to dispose of it. As long as you're only buying things you need and intend to reuse for a long time then it may well be ok. I prefer glass containers to plastic for longevity although glass does have a tendency to chip with me!
I'd be interested to see what you find though.
Dans
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Hi Dans :wave: What I have found so far is mixed, and just opinions, not very scientific. Basically silicones will last forever, or longer than us anyway, and they cannot be recycled through any council schemes as there are none. There do seem to be private companies who recycle them by grinding them up into very small bits, adding something or other, then making them into something else, and you can apparently do the same at home. Not very satisfactory info so far so I need to look further.
Manufacture seems to be fairly OK as silicones are made from naturally occurring ingredients - silica sand and something like rubber or carbon. More research needed to get that info clear.
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Just seen this on pinterest https://www.piwakawakavalley.com/freeze-meat-without-plastic/?utm_medium=social&utm_source=pinterest&utm_campaign=tailwind_tribes&utm_content=tribes (https://www.piwakawakavalley.com/freeze-meat-without-plastic/?utm_medium=social&utm_source=pinterest&utm_campaign=tailwind_tribes&utm_content=tribes)
Basically she uses those metal buffet trays you get in carvery's etc. to use for meat storage in the freezer. I haven't looked any further into it but it's probably extremely expensive to buy a lot of them but might be something you could get a couple of as and when you could afford it.
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The thing that grips me most is the bale wrap used for the haylage, expensive to put on and then useless afterwards and then costs to dispose of if not burnt :'(
Here in Cumbria it collected at a small charge at a collection point and recycled into all sorts of things. See Solway Recycling. They take the net wrap too and empty containers such as fluke, wormer, drench comes in.
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The thing that grips me most is the bale wrap used for the haylage, expensive to put on and then useless afterwards and then costs to dispose of if not burnt :'(
Here in Cumbria it collected at a small charge at a collection point and recycled into all sorts of things. See Solway Recycling. They take the net wrap too and empty containers such as fluke, wormer, drench comes in.
I did enquire of the local Solway agent, he quoted me almost the cost of the Bale wrap !