• @Wogi@lemmy.world
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      1545 months ago

      It’s biodegradable, renewable, and only needs to get from the manufacturer to your cabinet, where it can be replaced with heartier permanent storage.

      • @errer@lemmy.world
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        485 months ago

        Real environmentalists just pack the flour into their jeans pockets to avoid unnecessary paper waste

      • @nilloc@discuss.tchncs.de
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        45 months ago

        Same for sugar, it’s really annoying that so many things have switched to plastic. Gram crackers, Ritz and Saltines all used to be in waxed paper when I was a kid and were fine.

        Now they switch to plastic, but make sure it’s tinted to mimic the old paper versions.

      • @moody
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        15 months ago

        And it also needs to leave everything inside my backpack coated in a thin layer of flour.

        What I don’t get is why they put it in a single two-layer paper bag instead of two single-layer paper bags, which would clearly be more effective.

      • @atomicorange@lemmy.world
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        145 months ago

        Downvoting isn’t for disagreement. If you think the conversation is valuable you can upvote for visibility while disagreeing in a comment. This is important subject matter that needs to be hashed out!

      • @thesystemisdown@lemmy.world
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        5 months ago

        There might be a desire from those that were looking for the top response to let it ride for visibility. I wish most things were as practically packaged as flour.

        Edit: Can we do coffee next? I drink a lot of the stuff, and unless I roast my own, there is absolutely no environmentally friendly option. I tried roasting my own. I set off the smoke detector, upset the dogs, and made my house smell bad.

        • @zalgotext@sh.itjust.works
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          45 months ago

          Most of the local roasters I go to sell coffee in recyclable paper bags that are technically resealable using the little bendy tie thingy. I end up just dumping it into an airtight glass jar once I open it up though.

          • @Broken_Monitor@lemmy.world
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            35 months ago

            Mine are always using plastic. I guess because they can seal it better? I feel like if I’m buying it directly to have it fresh this really doesn’t do shit, so I would be very cool with paper bags too.

        • BubbleMonkey
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          5 months ago

          Do you consider carbon neutral/negative(or at least as close as possible) to be environmentally friendly? What about sustainable agricultural practices?

          If yes, I bought some coffee from Tiny Footprint coffee, which claims to be carbon negative, allegedly gets coffee from smaller local growers (you can pick the growing conditions you like, so like I got a bunch from women-owned farms), and they are actively trying to restore the areas where they source coffee. Also it’s packed in wax coated paper, and I believe you can buy bulk if you like.

          It’s not cheap, and the roasts tend lighter than you’d expect (so imo a medium brews like a light), but it’s really good coffee.

          And yeah, I live kinda close to a coffee roaster and it doesn’t smell great at all. If you have a garage, a cheap used oven set up out there might do the trick.

          • @thesystemisdown@lemmy.world
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            25 months ago

            Sweet, thanks!

            Yes, I seek out the most ethical option with whatever I consume. Being fair to people and kind to the environment should always come before convenience and profit. Especially for anything considered a luxury like coffee or chocolate. It would be nice if it was just on the shelf at the store since I’m already there, but it usually doesn’t work that way.

      • @TheTetrapod@lemmy.world
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        105 months ago

        I think it’s because a lot of people’s (myself included) knee-jerk reaction is “yeah, those bags do suck”, then they look at the comments and either realize the tide is against them or end up agreeing with the points in the comments upon reflection.

    • @oldfart@lemm.ee
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      245 months ago

      Exactly, one of the last products not sold in single use plastic packaging yet gets shat on

      • Captain Aggravated
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        25 months ago

        My main thing with the paper bags is the glue they use that makes it difficult to open without ripping the bag,

    • @RememberTheApollo_@lemmy.world
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      225 months ago

      Seconded. Pretty much minimum waste for the amount you get. Buy a four jar or snap container that will keep the air out. Reusable, keeps four fresh longer, easier to scoop from, less mess.

      • Captain Aggravated
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        15 months ago

        I bought a set of containers for stuff like that that is just too small. The bigger tubs hold about 4.8 pounds of flour so if I buy a 5 pound bag I have to wait until I make something to transfer it to the tub.

    • AgentOrangesicle
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      125 months ago

      Much easier for shoplifting, yeah. Just stick a knife in the bag and inconspicuously drain it into your fanny pack while pretending to browse other baking items. Walk on out and you’ve got 1.5 lb of that all-purpose grain glitter and no one is the wiser.

      • @FiniteBanjo@lemmy.today
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        5 months ago

        Flour is like the cheapest food you can buy, though? A whole day of cheese and jalapeno stuffed bread takes like $5 to make.

        • AgentOrangesicle
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          145 months ago

          You can use it for gravel as well. I walked into a quarry recently and pretended to fall into a pile of loose gravel (but then I started covertly shoveling it into my fanny pack).

          Boom. Close the zipper on that lock box while some production employees help you out of the gravel and you’ve secured 1/8500th of what you need for your new driveway. You just have to pull the grift a few more times.

          They know my face at the local quarry now, though, which is problematic.

        • AgentOrangesicle
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          35 months ago

          Yeah, but like, the jalapenos and cheese don’t just fit in the fanny pack after all the flour is in there. It’s rough getting by these days.

      • Echo Dot
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        25 months ago

        So you’re the reason there’s always at least one ripped bag.

    • @Nindelofocho@lemmy.world
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      105 months ago

      Why not a recyclable cardboard tube like oats come in sometimes? Probably easier for logistics too when packaging (of course retooling all the equipment from like 1988 wouldnt be easy but its one and done)

      • @FiniteBanjo@lemmy.today
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        55 months ago

        The bags aren’t much better in this regard, but anything that easily topples over is going to add likeliness of spills. Also, those tubes are probably more expensive than the bags or the plastic.

        • Echo Dot
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          5 months ago

          They mean a cardboard tube that’s recyclable. You know like cardboard, in a tube shape.

          You know what a pipe made of metal looks like, well like that but not made of metal, made of cardboard. Imagine a flat bit of cardboard, in a tube shape.

          • themeatbridge
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            25 months ago

            This was helpful, but could you maybe create a diagram? Or perhaps an interpretive dance performance?

  • @niktemadur@lemmy.world
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    505 months ago

    You want them to use plastic?
    Then later complain about runaway plastic pollution?

    The same kind of circular logic applied to politics leads people to not vote, arguing that bOtH pArTiEs ArE tHe SaMe and never make the connection that their chronic apathy and fickleness is what caused the mess the are apathetic about, only now with more cynicism.

        • @Drivebyhaiku@lemmy.world
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          135 months ago

          I came here to mention this. What a lot of us fail to realize is that businesses weren’t always seeking to cut corners to simply benefit shareholders. There used to be a more varied model of looking at what made a good business and part of that was being a bro to your customers and a good citizen of your national community. They didn’t just print flour bags with patterns for reuse, they had multiple patterns to choose from because they knew that stigma would arise for people clothed in repurposed flour bags if it was one specific look so they did a range of fabric patterns to ease the stigma of people just trying to get by.

          The concepts of social responsibilities of business has fundamentally changed to a model of performative abstention of harm rather than an actual visible bettering of anything other than the lining of pockets

          • @Monzcarro@feddit.uk
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            85 months ago

            Yeah, I was quite surprised by this as I’m so used to how capitalism ruins everything.

            https://adirondackgirlatheart.com/feed-sack-fabric/

            This is what I read and it was a shock to me that companies not only improved the quality of the cloth when they realised people made garments from sacks, but also strove to provide fashionable designs and wash-off labels. There are some really gorgeous prints on here.

            Nowadays, it feels like they would make the original packaging more coarse, then sell the product with nicer packaging at a premium, whilst making sure their logo was indelible.

            • @Drivebyhaiku@lemmy.world
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              65 months ago

              We are dealing with a really not great situation currently. Capitalism has become an all gas no breaks situation but that wasn’t always the case. Like there didn’t used to be many billionaires not because of inflation but because you had a lot of cooling effects. Banks in the US used to not be able to invest with the funds of the individual patrons. They could only invest with their own funds which made banks very stable in comparison to now. Being taxed 70% personal income at the top bracket also had an effect. After awhile aiming for profits just brought diminished personal returns so what they did was reinvest those funds elsewhere in their own businesses. Offering competitive wages to attract better labour, providing kickbacks to customers to foster brand loyalty, donating to create things like museums, parks, halls and university amenities.

              Not to say it was at all perfect. Like those resources tended to be very personal glory focused and fell often along classist and racist lines but it did mean that you didn’t have as much dragon hoarding or the purchase, hollowing out and dumping of businesses that are thrown out like used tissues after extraction of all the potential value that is common in our modern age.

            • @DragonTypeWyvern@midwest.social
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              25 months ago

              If you’re ever trying to convince a friend on the fence about capitalism, try leading with recommending “The Man Who Broke Capitalism.” (If they read books, like some kind of nerd)

              The author doesn’t quite make the next leap but it describes the problems with our modern interpretation quite well.

    • @Iheartcheese@lemmy.world
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      225 months ago

      Bitches about flour bags.

      Turns it into a not both party are the same temper tantrum.

      God I love this shithole of a website.

  • kbin_space_program
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    5 months ago

    Also, i guarantee that there are bugs infesting the flour section of your grocery store and they absolutely hitch rides on the bags home

    Former grocery store worker.

    • Semi-Hemi-Lemmygod
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      305 months ago

      Flour isn’t stored in sanitary conditions. It’s just giant piles in warehouses. This is the real reason that raw cookie dough isn’t safe to eat. The eggs are usually fine, it’s the flour that’s riddled with disease. If you heat it to about 160°F you can eat all the cookie dough you want.

      • @brbposting@sh.itjust.works
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        75 months ago

        NYT just posted a recipe two weeks back:

        Heat-treat the flour: Heat oven to 400 degrees. Line a sheet pan with parchment, add the flour and spread it into a thin layer. Bake flour for 5 minutes (see Tip). Cool flour completely.

        Edible Cookie Dough

      • @Katana314@lemmy.world
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        45 months ago

        But my favorite hobby at home was spooning raw flour into my mouth and washing it down with melted crayons…

        • Semi-Hemi-Lemmygod
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          375 months ago

          Sorry, I meant that you heat the flour to 160°F, then cool and mix it it into the dough.

          And, yes, I’m saying that substituting apple sauce doesn’t make it safe.

    • @Kayday@lemmy.world
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      245 months ago

      I could have gone my whole life not knowing that and you just walked right in here and said it.

    • @helpImTrappedOnline@lemmy.world
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      185 months ago

      “What ever you do, do not breath in the concrete dust. We also packaged it in a flimsy paper bag allowing all the dust spill out and enter the air.”

      On one hand I get why they do it, you need a lot of bags for larger jobs and trying to put those in plastic containers is extremely wasteful and costly, but they could at least double ply the bags or something.

      • @Death_Equity@lemmy.world
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        65 months ago

        Concrete bags are usually two ply, but they are pretty thin. Most of the dust gets shot out the corner when you move them around, especially the ones with the tear-out corner for pouring. They do sell concrete in plastic bags though, great for wet weather but they can get kind of slick. For the bigger jobs you get a mixer truck delivery.

  • @Agent641@lemmy.world
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    305 months ago

    I buy it in paper bags and transfer it to cereal Tupperware.

    If I buy flour in bulk, like more than 10kg at a time, I vacuum seal it in bags and then freeze/thaw/freeze it to kill beasties.

      • @bluewing@lemm.ee
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        55 months ago

        Yes there are bits and pieces and whole insects in your flour. And they are impossible to remove. So there are actual legal limits as to how much insects parts can be in the package of flour.

        Things like meal worms tend to come from poor home storage though. If you store your flour in an air tight container, they aren’t much of a problem. Unless it take you years to use up a bag of flour.

  • @Dvixen@lemmy.world
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    285 months ago

    Won’t be long before flour companies start packaging with fabric so people can make clothes.