Takeaways, fresh produce, snacks, gift boxes – readers detail everyday life wrapped in layer upon layer of plastic, and share ways to cut down on plastic, such as bringing their own containers and finding recycling points.
Young Chinese people on a Working Holiday visa deliver food on foot in Melbourne, earning over 1,200 AUD a month; the platform sets no delivery deadline, and customers say “take it easy” – here, individual workers are seen and respected.
The proliferation of plastic is a byproduct of the petrochemical industry seeking outlets for post-war capacity, not a carefully considered decision. In Plastic: A Toxic Love Story, Susan Freinkel argues that the problem lies not with the material, but with the relationship between people and plastic.
During those years of insurance back-office work in Shenzhen, Miantuan Jingjing’s table shifted from plastic takeout containers to an electric steamer and a bowl of chicken soup noodles — until her body pressed the resignation button for her.
From 2008, Cao Xiaohong built a group-buying circle for mums in a small Hunan town via Wotu Workshop; Xiao Yunsheng has sold veg at the Beijing Organic Farmers’ Market for over a decade. They reflect on building producer–consumer trust, and whether it can still withstand livestreaming and drop-shipping.
Riders’ monthly cost: RMB 525 versus 1,500; pension benefits could differ by more than thirty times. Meituan’s “loss-making” claim crumbles under a close reading of its financial statements, while riders put it plainly: protection is not a luxury.
One-pot fried rice, claypot rice, pressure-cooker meals done in fifteen minutes, weekend braised meat portioned out for the week, workplace canteens, community canteens, little neighbourhood eateries, wet markets… Skip takeaway, and working people actually have plenty of ways to eat.
Foodthink marks Qingming by building a “cemetery” for five articles deleted from its WeChat Official Account — detailing, one by one, why and when each vanished, from a Bianlifeng algorithm battle to a farmer’s plastic mulch film dispute — and leaving keywords to help readers find the originals.
Muyunpo was founded in 2017 by the non-profit Shuguang in Xiaojin County, Sichuan’s Jiarong Tibetan region. Villagers’ groups set their own foraging and cultivation standards, with sales surpluses returned to the community at year-end—replacing the traditional purchasing system of price-suppressing traders and farmers at the market’s mercy.
Meituan has funded environmental organisations dedicated to monitoring food-delivery plastic pollution, yet their critical voices have gradually faded. Two veteran environmental advocates compare this to the 2004 Asia Pulp & Paper (APP) case, noting that the balance of power between businesses and public-interest organisations has quietly reversed.