It has been estimated that a typical American kid who takes a disposable lunch to school generates 67 pounds of discarded packaging waste per school year. That adds up to more than 18,000 pounds yearly for the average-sized elementary school.

Try to pack your child a "waste-free" lunch—one in which everything can be eaten, reused, recycled or composted. Replace plastic bags, plastic utensils, disposable containers, paper napkins and brown paper bags with reusable alternatives: a lunch box, reusable drink containers, cloth napkins and silverware. You could save up to $250 a year and as much weight in waste as the average nine-year-old—70 pounds!