h a l f b a k e r yThe phrase 'crumpled heap' comes to mind.
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I hate stale cereal. Absolutely and completely, I despise it. I like my
cereal crunchy. It seems to me that it's awfully wasteful to use the
double packaging of a cardboard box with a bag inside, a bag that
has
to be rolled up to keep the freshness in and even then isn't exactly
airtight. I've
seen
some cereals, such as Corn Pops, that have a 2-ply
bag, consisting of a foil outer layer with a wax-paper-like inner
layer.
But you still have to roll it up and pray that you rolled it tightly
enough, and the cardboard box is completey pointless except as an
advertising platform.
So I got to thinking... why not make the whole cereal box out of
recyclable hard
plastic, with a pump handle on top to siphon out the air after each
use
and keep your cereal (1) safe from being crushed, and (2) fresh?
Some chip (crisp) companies have done this already, such as Frito-
Lay's Go Snacks. After doing some searching online, I saw that a
large
retailer chain in the UK, Sainsbury's, has taken the opposite route
and
is getting rid of the box and packaging its cereal in bags only, and
this
move has stirred up a lot of controversy because people don't want
their cereal getting pulverized in transit, and flimsy bags don't stack
neatly on shelves and refrigerator tops.
Clearly, something has got to go, but it just as clearly cannot be the
box. So ditch the bag, and improve the box!
Plastic cereal container, $6.99
http://www.stacksan...m_source=googlebase
"handy, stylish, and innovative". Well, two out of three ain't bad. [jutta, Oct 22 2009]
KlipIt cereal container, $14.99
http://www.thehomem...EB&mr:referralID=NA
"Maximize cereal’s freshness!" [jutta, Oct 22 2009]
Tupperware container, $16
http://order.tupper...number=P10055072000
"Why let expensive cereal go stale?" [jutta, Oct 22 2009]
2 Gallon ZipLoc
http://www.drugstor...o_2_gallon_size.htm
[MisterQED, Oct 23 2009]
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Annotation:
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They sell milk in bags in Canada.
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And ketchup chips. Mmmmm. Ketchup chips. |
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Malt-O-Meal has been packaging cardboard inside plastic for ages. Not what you're going for?
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Make the plastic containers recyclable and I'll be happy. Or you could reuse them for cookies, chips, etc. Maybe fill a whole lot with water and use for water cannons? |
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you can pour your cereal from the box into a tupperware container, a la Forgetting Sarah Marshall. |
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CapClap, but then you're left with the empty cereal packaging to
dispose of.
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Recyclability added, dabg. |
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This seems wasteful over independently produced hard plastic containers (see links) and refills. The empty cereal packaging to dispose of is easier to make low-impact and recyclable than the hard box. |
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I like the idea (and one of those pastries is from me) but I'm not totally convinced this is the best approach. The packaging would probably cost more than the status quo to manufacture and be more expensive at the point of sale. Some clever marketing (highlighting the freshness etc.) could mitigate this with a deposit/return system where customers are given financial incentive to participate. |
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I quite like that idea, IT. Should I add the refill service to the
post? |
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[Ian], the water could be delivered though a long tube |
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And we could give the long tube a special name... Pumping In
Potable Eau... PIPE. |
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Our milkman also delivers sacks of garden compost and kitty litter. |
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A few grocery stores still have bulk areas, and I've seen cereal
in them. If there was a set of sealing plastic boxes with a
fixed weight so the grocery store could tare out the boxes
and just sell by weight, reusable boxes would save a lot of
packaging in the long run. |
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You'd think the stickler for reality guy [21Q] would realize that vacuum packing cereal would crush it flat, wait flatter, than a pancake. Maybe not GrapeNuts, but all the edible ones. :- )
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But back to the idea, so you want to buy cereal in a ziplock bag? Well then go to the store buy a 2 Gallon sized ziploc and then transfer the cereal to that bag.
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And [Jutta], I think I got you beat, my solution comes in at just over $0.39. (link) Though I guess it takes more work. |
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QED, the whole point of my idea is to *not* use bags. That
solution is Baked by cheap bargain brand cereal, and you needn't
pump the vacuum handle so hard as to crush your cereal to get
enough air out to keep it fresh long enough to eat it. I only need
a box to last a week or 2, but I want it crunchy to the last bite. It
doesn't even have to be very thick plastic. Wal-Mart brand knock-
off Tupperware containers are awfully cheap, andthat material
would work fine for this purpose. When you're done, mail the
box back for a deposit refund, or keep it to store extra hardware
in your toolshed. |
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// I only need a box to last a week or 2, but I want it crunchy to the last bite.
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You're not supposed to eat the box! |
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*looks around sheepishly*
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Than they should put that on the BOX! *Plastic* wouldn't be
edible, so that's another problem my invention would solve! |
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"What if the postman and milkman were the same woman?"
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Is there a gender-identity problem in Britain? |
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