An order of takeout food can grow your garbage: all those styrofoam, plastic and paper containers that get used once and then tossed. There are some restaurants using compostable plastics (whether corn, soy or sugarcane), but even those involve resource waste.

The most sustainable way to order out is to bring your own container (BYOC). In this video, avid recycler Emily Dirksen tried out the concept on one Sydney (Australia) restaurant.We also have a video on compostable containers.