Revert back to glass milk bottles?

mvpr

How are things?

Just been up to the recycling centre and couldnt help but notice the vast amount of tetra-pack cartons I was throwing away.

Would it not be better for the environment to revert back to the good old-fashioned glass milk bottle that could be re-used an infinite number of times?

Is there some reason why it wouldnt be appropriate anymore? (Safety issues/magpies attacking etc...)

What does anyone think? What would you prefer?

Boston

mvpr wrote:

How are things?

Just been up to the recycling centre and couldnt help but notice the vast amount of tetra-pack cartons I was throwing away.

Would it not be better for the environment to revert back to the good old-fashioned glass milk bottle that could be re-used an infinite number of times?

Is there some reason why it wouldnt be appropriate anymore? (Safety issues/magpies attacking etc...)

What does anyone think? What would you prefer?

You need a large infastucture to deploy glass bottles. Expensive in short.

Also where are you getting the idea that glass can be used infinitely many times? It suffers from fatigue just like any material.

mvpr

Ah ye know what i mean - glass bottle will last a good few years at least...

Seems like such a waste using tetra-pack cartons, and making their creator billions in the process. Think hes one of the richest men in the world now!

slave1

Think hes one of the richest men in the world now

he would be if he hadn't died in the 80's, his kids are worth 17Billion according to forbes

Alun

LiouVille wrote:

You need a large infastucture to deploy glass bottles. Expensive in short.

Not only that, but the cleaning and sterilizing of the returned bottles uses lots of both energy and water. Then there's the extra energy required to lug around the extra weight of the bottles as compared to a plastic or Tetrapak carton. Nothing is ever as simple as it sounds.

mvpr

Thats what I was thinking Alun... Thanks guys - my mind will be at rest now for Christmas...!

SeanW

TetraPak FTW. I always choose TetraPak and suchlike cardboard containers over plastic for milk.

Alun

Many moons ago in a 'previous life', I was doing some IT work for a big TetraPak plant in Germany. Back then they were looking at recycling TetraPak cartons into, of all things, kitchen worktops! Seems like they can be chopped up into small pieces and pulped, then heated and compressed at high pressure into planks. The plastic content of the packaging melts and holds the other components together. The result looked quite impressive and pretty heavy duty I must say. No idea if it ever took off though.

Odaise Gaelach

mvpr wrote:

Ah ye know what i mean - glass bottle will last a good few years at least...

Unless they get smashed, in which case you're buggered.