Zero Waste - Trees Do Listen

I am very happy to report that I love my new Etee reusable sandwich bags. We have not purchased the traditional plastic sandwich bags for years. We used lunch kits, lunch skins, (re)zip, stashers and Abeego in the past. Now we have discovered Etee food bags and I can confidently say they are the best reusable sandwich bags. When the kids take a sandwich to school, they usually have other food to go with it which makes the lunch kit a great choice. We love the PlanetBox Rover lunch kit because their sandwiches cannot get squished and there is space for fruit, veggies and treats in the other compartments. They are very easy to clean and dry because they are one piece of hard stainless steel. In terms of carrying a whole lunch to school, we love a lunch kit. It is so simple, just open one box and all the food is there. But there are times when we don't want to bring a lunch kit. For example, when we go skiing or hiking, we want to stick a sandwich in our pocket. In this case the Etee is superior to lunch skins, Abeego wraps, re(zeip) and stashers as the best reusable sanwich bags. What is an Etee Reusable Sandwich Bag? Etee food bags are reusable bags made of thin organic cotton, bees wax, tree resin and essential oils. Each Etee bag is easily flexible and can stick to itself just like plastic wrap. They are light weight and come in a bag shape (or simple flat square). They are surprisingly easy to clean and dry very fast. I love how they can stand on their own for drying so I don't need to find a long spoon to prop them up on. They work well to store sandwiches, cookies, veggies, bread and well... any food! AND they are easily compostable. There are other reusable food bags on the market (and in my house) and I think each has it's own ideal use. We actually bought the larger bags but we use them for sandwiches. Another cool feature is that I can put veggies on one side of the bag and nuts or cheese on the other side. When I fold it, it creates a seal to separate the snacks but keeps them together in one package. Very handy. Flexibility Etee reusable sandwich bags are made from a thin layer of cotton covered with wax and resin. Because it is so thin, it has great flexibility. When I compare it to the Abeego wax wrap, I find it much more pliable. The Abeego wraps are stiffer and leave a beeswax flavour to the foods they are touching. The Etee food bags are not only more flexible but I find that they are easier to seal and they keep their seal. The lunchskins are also very flexible but because of the large piece of velcro, they do not quite fold as easily and keep their folded shape. The (re)size bags are somewhat flexible but cannot be folded smaller than they already are because the "zipper" is quite thick. Similarily the Stashers fold but do not keep their folded shape easily. Cleaning The hardest part about cleaning the Etee food wraps is turning them inside out. After that, you simply use cold soapy water and wipe them down. The best part about cleaning them is that they stand on their own to dry. Plus they dry very quickly. Lunchskins are also easy to clean because they can either go in the dishwasher or be easily washed in the same manner (but you can use hot water). Unfortunately, they take much longer to dry so. Sometimes, I just wipe them out because I don't want to wait for them to dry. Portability Obviously all of these reusable containers are portable but I do think the Etee wins the category. It is able to pack up to the size of the sandwich inside with a nice seal. The Abeego also packs to the size of the sandwich but it doesn't seal as well. I keep an Etee wrap folded in my purse for those times when I have left overs at a restaurant or want to get a quick take out snack. Compostable / Recyclable According to their website, you can use an Etee bag safely for food for a year. After that time, you can repurpose it or cut it into small pieces and compost it. That sounds very easy. Easy to Order an Etee Reusable Sandwich Bag Online It is very easy to get your hands on an Etee reusable sandwich bag. I ordered mine online and I was so happy that they mailed in in a 100% recycled and recyclable material envelope. You never know what type of packaging you will get when you order online. I can happily announce that my Etee bags did not come with any plastic or giant boxes. When I first received them, they were a little sticky and smelled of wax but that quickly went away and they are really great now. They come in a set of 3, I think I need to get another set! UPDATE: I must note that I used my Etee reusable sandwich bag on a hike recently. While I was eating my sandwich at the top of a mountain on a sunny day, I was getting swarmed by wasps. I noticed that they were interested in my Etee wax wrap. I removed the sandwich and placed the wrap on the ground and walked away. The wasps stayed with the wrap. A few minutes later, I started eating a cookie and again, wasps... I realized that I had another wax wrap that the cookie was wrapped in that the wasps were attracted to. SO, I still recommend these wraps but they might attract some unwanted attention!