Whole Earth Packaging Archive Page
Thursday, October 27, 2011

We’re all about recycling here at Whole Earth Packaging. And we’re about to get inundated with stuff to recycle.

What?

We’re talking about Halloween candy. Once the holiday is over, your kids will be on a sugar high for what feels like days. Then Thanksgiving rolls around, and you still have more candy than you know what to do with. It could be simple to throw all that candy in the trash… but that’s not really eco-friendly, is it? Here are some ways to recycle your Halloween candy.

• Make some tasty desserts for holiday gatherings. You could cut a few bananas in half, insert a wooden craft stick to create a popsicle, and freeze the bananas and a few peanut butter cups for two hours. Dip the banana popsicles in melted chocolate, and coat them with the chopped up frozen peanut butter cups. Put them back into the freezer until they’re hard. (You can try other kinds of candy, too!)
• Decorate a gingerbread house. Talk about upcycling! M&Ms, Skittles, Starbursts, peppermints, and candy bars are all great for this.
• Donate the candy. Put your kids in the giving spirit by donating to various organizations. You can find them on the internet or by contacting a local volunteer group.
• Got a birthday coming up? Use the candy to fill birthday party goody bags, and give some out as game prizes. They’re even good for filling piñatas.

Enjoy Halloween… and don’t eat too much!



by: Whole Earth Packaging
Friday, October 21, 2011

What a crazy world we live in, huh? We’re doing our best to provide you with biodegradable and eco-friendly products so that you can help keep the world around as long as possible. After all, with all the weird and wacky stuff that goes on across this great planet—why would we want to sacrifice it? We’ve been thinking about weird things to have at Halloween parties, and some of these crazy cocktails from around the world peaked out interest. Would you ever serve something like this?

Snake wine – Vietnam
Snakes are considered to be good for your health in South East Asia. This wine is created by infusing an ENTIRE SNAKE into rice wine. We like sake… but this is just crazy!

Scorpion vodka – England
What will those crazy Brits come up with next? The vodka is distilled five times and it’s produced from 100% single grain wheat. But that’s really second fiddle to the real (edible!) scorpion inside.

Seagull wine – Arctic Circle
The recipe for this wine is really quite simple. You take a dead seagull, stuff it into a bottle of water, and leave it to ferment under the sun for a while. Seriously. That’s what happens.

Cricket Cocktail – USA (New York)
We had to throw one in from the good old US of A. This is a pina colada-esque drink. It’s served with bamboo (which you can’t eat) and crickets (which you can). Yum?

The world is really a unique and special place. Do what you can to keep it going with eco-friendly products. As weird as they are, we want these crazy traditions to stay around.


by: Whole Earth Packaging
Monday, October 17, 2011

Parties are a common occurrence during Halloween. With food, costumes, candy, family and friends… What more could anyone ask for in a Halloween party? How about being friendly to out environment? This Halloween, throw a green Halloween party for your family and friends, complete with organic foods and environmentally friendly party supplies! Here are 10 ways you can celebrate Halloween by going green.

1. Instead of mailing invitations to your party guests, send them an email invite.
2. Pass on buying the red plastic cups you commonly see at parties, and opt for a eco-friendly beverage cup. In addition to using green cups, have each party guest write their name on their cup and insist that they can only use one cup the entire party.
3. Biodegradable plates are made of recycled fiber and are completely biodegradable and compostable. These environmentally friendly plates are a great alternative to normal paper, plastic or Styrofoam plates you would normally use for a party.
4. If you don’t want the extra expense that comes with buying party dinnerware, use the plates, cups and silverware from your cupboards.
5. Cut the electricity and light up the party with locally grown pumpkins you’ve carved and lit with candles.
6. Serve guests organic or locally grown veggies as a party snack.
7. Don’t waste money on Halloween decorations. Use your imagination and create homemade decorations. For example, place tall candelabras with dark red or black candles around rooms to create a scary atmosphere. You can even use tree branches to make ghosts, by draping white curtains or linens over the branches.
8. If you plan to give your party guests Halloween candy as a party favor, use recyclable or reusable bags.
9. Fill the reusable bags with homemade treats and candy.
10. Insist guests show up in a homemade, not a store bought, costume.

We hope you have an environmentally friendly happy Halloween, from everyone at Whole Earth packaging!



by: Whole Earth Packaging
Friday, October 7, 2011

Pumpkins abound this season! We thought we’d take a break from some of our eco-friendly talk, and just give you something friendly to think about. (The Earth is always first in our minds, though… Be sure to use reusable dishes or some biodegradable cutlery when you share this dish with your friends and family!)

Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Loaf

You’ll need:
½ cup unsalted butter
1 ¼ cups sugar
3 large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup canned pumpkin
1 ¾ cups flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
½ teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon each: cinnamon, ground ginger, ground nutmeg
½ cup milk
¾ cup chocolate chips or raisins
¾ cup chopped walnuts or pecans

• Line a 9”x5” loaf pan with wax or parchment paper (or you can grease it and flour it). Set the pan aside and heat the oven to 350.
• Using your electric mixer on medium, cream the butter in a large bowl, gradually adding the sugar as you go. Add the eggs (one at a time), beating well after each one. Add the vanilla extract and the pumpkin in.
• In a medium-sized bowl, sift together the flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, and spices.
• With a wooden spoon, blend 1/3 of the flour mixture into the butter mixture. Then add half of the milk. Alternate additions of the remaining flour mixture and the milk. Be sure to blend well after each addition. Fold in the chocolate chips and the walnuts.
• Scrape the batter into the prepared pan. Bake on the center rack of your oven until a toothpick comes out clean. This should be about 50-60 minutes.
• Remove the pan and put it on a cooling rack for about 15 minutes. Remove the loaf from the pan and place it on the rack to finish cooling.

Yum! This recipe celebrates what the earth has to offer this season. Celebrate with this earth friendly recipe.



by: Whole Earth Packaging

Home