While traveling to Chengdu airlines last week on Shanghai Airline, I was inspired.

Inspired to vent.

It was an inspiration rooted in the fact that the meal was a box of vacuum packed junk (note, the picture above is not mine).  A roll, some dried cherries, peanuts, and something else that I could not make out when peeking at my neighbors collection.

Just another reminder that China’s problem with waste is not a land based phenomenon, it really highlighted the fact that a change was needed.  That the current system of literally boxing up prepackaged items was a horrible one as:

1. Prepackaged food is horrible (sorry, that just has to be said)
2. The box is simply unnecessary trash that has no use but to facilitate laziness
3. Unopened prepackage food waste levels are high, which ranks up there with all those wasted ketchup packets at McDonald’s
4. Non of the “food” was organic in nature, nor in biodegradable vessels

All issues that could be alleviated/ avoided were any of the follows steps taken:

1)Buy on Board (B.O.B.)
Implement a Buy on Board (B.O.B.) program that would change the current giveaway program to a purchase system.  It is a program that initially irked travelers in the US, however with the B.O.B. offering better food options/ quality at a reasonable prices, the grumbles were quashed and no airlines are reducing large amounts of waste….  while saving large amounts of money.

Win-Win

2) Grab and Go.
Grab and go meals, are programs that require passengers to make a minimal amount by grabbing a meal bag between the ticket counter and the gate.  In the US, this was further complicate by the fact that I would have to actually pick up a sack and the piece of fruit separately, a step that I now see as very sustainable.

those meals saved are then simply rolled down to the next gate where they can be used.  Another way to further reduce waste, and save money.

3) serve single servings .. separately
for those firms who just can’t break away from the individually wrapped ~ over preserved vacuum packed stuff, at least reduce waste by walking down the aisle and offering them on an individual basis.

Reducing waste, and potentially reducing the need for a trolley, passengers would naturally avoid some items, while choosing others, and thus provide airlines with better intelligence on their offerings… another option for reducing ongoing waste

4) Removing condiments from standard meals.
In China, I find it interesting that salt and pepper are often included in the plastic fork, knife, spoon set it isn’t really useful with Chinese food.

It is a clear example of an  item that could simply offered on an as needed basis, and that by doing so, airlines around the world would save a large amount of waste from entering the system.

5) Fruit over chips
Perhaps a little more progressive, here is another item that would reduce airline waste.. or at least ensure the waste would be more friendly to the environment should it enter a landfill.

6) Recycling
Perhaps best done through regulation and supervision, the recycling of cans, bottles, and boxes is a no brainer for me. With every plane holding multiple carts that could be employed to manage this, it is simply a matter of training to get the on board staff to do a simple first sort of stacking cups or bagging cans/ bottles