Friday Night Bites: How to Recycle Stadium Food
This year, WasteLessWednesday held a blog-writing contest among public relations students at the University of Texas at Austin. Several students made the cut, and Sofia Marichal was first on deck with the “Sunscreen Switch” blog published for the summer season. Next up is Maggie Mullen, who taps into her passion for sports and yummy concession-stand snacks to tackle a big question just in time for football season: How recyclable is concession stand packaging?
By Maggie Mullen
I’m a huge sporting events fan. And something I am an even bigger aficionado of is the concession stand food at the stadium. It’s finally college football season, and nothing completes a game like an ice-cold beer accompanied by a hotdog, fully loaded of course. After that, I’m sure I’ll still be snacky, so halftime will lead me straight to a popcorn box with M&Ms on the side. I also can't seem to say no to a corn dog. Next thing I know it's the final play, I’m having to unbutton my pants, and it's a stadium food graveyard under my seat.
The endless possibilities on the menu can make a concession stand order a difficult decision, but what may be even more difficult to decide is what to do with the trash and leftovers once the game is over. Attendees at sporting events across the US generate about 39 million pounds of trash per year, and a leading cause is fans simply not knowing what can be recycled and what should just be tossed in the trash.
To put this into perspective for you, let's focus on just Texas. For high school football alone, there are some 1,300 stadiums with a combined capacity of 4.1 million people. If a hypothetical one-third of that 4.1 million are purchasing concession-stand products, nearly 1.4 million people would need to make the decision of what to do with all their leftover trash. Fans everywhere have the option to do their part by taking their waste to the correct places, but how many of them know what’s recyclable and what’s not?
Recycling is different in every community, but most sporting arenas have their own guidelines posted on their trash and recycling bins. Before you toss your containers in the recycling bin, remove as much excess food and drink as possible. Finish that last sip of Coke in the can, eat that final bite of pizza crust, and dump out what’s left of your nachos before dropping them into the blue bin. If the grease is too much or the nacho cheese overflows, choose the trash can instead to avoid contaminating other pieces.
People putting non-recyclables into recycling bins is one of the biggest problems experienced by the recycling industry today. Unfortunately, knowing what to recycle can be tricky, so remember: When in doubt throw it out. It’s helpful to keep in mind Styrofoam is rarely accepted for recycling, but aluminum cans, glass bottles, and plastic containers labeled #1 and #2 are widely recycled. Some facilities even have bins for compostables like food and certain containers.
Sporting events can be exciting, high-energy, and fast-paced events. Go cheer on your hometown team, sing the alma mater in the stands, enjoy the Friday night lights, eat a hotdog while the running back makes a game-winning touchdown, and now be a part of game-day recycling as well. No matter where your home game is, do the stadium workers a solid and don’t leave your trash under your seat. Every stadium has garbage cans.