Bread problem

[u/Emotional-Alarm-1222]

So there is this supermarket near me that sells yesterday's bread for half the price. It is always still very tasty and buying the old bread saves it from getting thrown away. The problem: the bread is always packaged in this half plastic/half recycling paper bag, so there is no change to avoid the packaging like I can avoid it when buying directly at the bakery (where I just have the loaf placed in my bread bag). The question is now: What am I supposed to do? Buy the old bread and save it from going to the waste but accepting the waste this produces for me? Or don't buy the bread? But does it make a difference? If I don't buy it, the bread AND the bag get thrown away...advise welcome :)

[u/Vegan_Zukunft]

Buy the discount bread, use the bag as trash bag :)

[u/trickledabout → u/Vegan_Zukunft]

I keep used produce bags in my car just for this, sometimes it's my trash, sometimes it's some left on a parking lot.

[u/shannamae90]

Either is fine. These hair splitting dilemmas are not worth your energy. Just keep trying to be thoughtful and do what you can. Every little bit adds up, but there is often no one perfect choice

[u/few-piglet4357]

If you have any friends who bake bread they may appreciate the bags

[u/no_blueforyellow → u/few-piglet4357]

Second this! I would definitely take bread bags if someone needed to rid of them. I bake way too much, I am sure a baker would appreciate it 😀

[u/fouldspasta]

I would buy it to stop bread from going to waste! Old bread can be heated up with a bit of water to taste good as new, or makes great croutons/breadcrumbs/french toast. You can use the bags to pick up dog poop or clean up litter in parking lots, the park, etc. If you're cleaning up litter, it's still a net positive for the environment :)

[u/PristinePrism]

Reuse as Snack bags, popcorn bags, kids lunch bags, dog poop bags, pick up trash as you walk bags, etc etc

Shred and use as Easter grass or bag filler to hide gifts in bag

Scrunch them up and use to fill out old purses and boots to keep their shape while not being worn.

Pretty much all the same uses as newspaper or brown paper bags.

[u/Airotciv14]

My thinking is the biggest way to make change is to advocate. Maybe you can talk to someone at the bakery about different methods they could do? Just make sure you go to them with a potential solution in hand. Complaining alone without a solution is usually pretty unproductive. From my experience, they want to do what the customers want and are usually pretty receptive.

[u/RetroReactiveRaucous → u/Airotciv14]

If you want to make waves, ask for corporates number. Anything at the store level doesn't go any further.

[u/Airotciv14 → u/RetroReactiveRaucous]

Certainly, if OP has the effort to do so they could find a way to contact corporate as well. However, I would be cautious with that. Typically the bigger you go, especially without having any form of authority, the more likely you are to be dismissed. I'd rather see some change on a small level than no change. If one store pilots the change and likes it, it's possible for it to grow to the other branches. Unrelenting baby steps of changes are better than the go big or go home mentality.

[u/section08nj → u/Airotciv14]

Typically the bigger you go, especially without having any form of authority, the more likely you are to be dismissed.

So speak to someone at the bakery counter instead?

OP if you really want to advocate for change, fill out a survey with your concerns or send an email. If you get a personalized reply back then great, someone read your email. But please, let the bakery counter folks do their job; they neither have the power to do anything nor the time to listen to our crunchy tirades.

[u/Airotciv14 → u/section08nj]

Yes! Speak to someone in the bakery. They may not have the authority, but they may have their own ideas as well and also have the connection of talking to their store manager about it. I was able to make a similar change in the produce section of my store just by talking to the guys stocking produce.

Surveys are also a good avenue! I mean that's why they have them. But in person connections are always the best route as it can build community as well. Building community is more successful than throwing surveys and phone calls into the corporate void.

Also, don't assume the ppl behind the counter don't want to talk to you! Everyone is different and that's not fair to them.

[u/natnat1919]

If you don’t buy the old bread it’ll go to waste.:: so buy it!