Lunchbox happy-sacks: Reusable Sandwich Bags | Lunch Box

07 Jan, 2009

Lunchbox happy-sacks: Reusable Sandwich Bags

Posted by: Meg In: Lunchbox Products

If you pack a lunchbox using throw away sandwich bags (aka ziplocs), you might want to consider buying a couple of washable, reusable happy-sacks. Invented by a Massachusetts Mom of three, the home-based workshop has great growth in demand and sales as more people aim to pack a waste free lunch.

Try to add some green to your lunch box packing habits in 2009! The happy-sacks website contends that just one reusable sandwich bag may eliminate roughly one thousand plastic bags over its lifetime. With the bags saved, they will pay for themselves over time and you can feel good about packing a waste-free lunchbox!

The things I love about happy-sacks is that they:

promote waste-free lunches
are made of safe materials (polyurethane coated nylon)
are made locally (in northeast USA)
come in a large variety of colors and patterns so every kid (and grownup) can find one they like
are washable — you may hand wash, wash in dishwasher or put in your washer/dryer
come in various sizes for sandwiches and snacks

Have you seen or used these first hand? If so, please give me your take on them… they seem to be a great product for people who want to turn their standard lunch boxes more green.

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23 Responses to "Lunchbox happy-sacks: Reusable Sandwich Bags"

1 | Sue Momster

January 8th, 2009 at 11:07 am

This is the first time I came across such bags. Have not seen one in my country and it is a good idea to save the environment.

2 | Jenny Bengen

January 12th, 2009 at 11:32 am

Great blog! I like your posts about keeping a green lunchbox.

3 | Vern Watson

January 13th, 2009 at 11:38 am

Finally! I’ve tried to reuse ziplocks for ages, but there are some foods they just can’t recover from. What a great idea!

4 | Robyn Evans

January 13th, 2009 at 7:41 pm

Hey,

We use the wrap-n-mat. It is nice for lots of lunch items. I do like this ones design on sliding it in the bag. Website is wrap-n-mat.com

5 | Doug

January 14th, 2009 at 1:22 pm

Thanks for the great information. I try washing ZipLocs with mixed results and worry that the water used negates the ‘re-use’ factor. I will check these out. Thanks again!!

6 | Deborah Lockett

January 16th, 2009 at 7:17 am

Looks like a great idea. Anyone have personal experience with these? I often use little containers but hard to fit several in the box and always hard to match tops to bottoms so resort to the easier zip-locs.

7 | Priscilla Cavalca

January 20th, 2009 at 12:54 pm

Sounds like a great product! I’ll definitely have to check them out.

8 | Meg

January 22nd, 2009 at 8:03 pm

Yep they do look great… I really try to keep ziploc use to a minimum and efforts really add up. If you use a standard lunchbox they could really help cut down on using ziplocs… Let me know what you think if you get one

9 | Mary

February 25th, 2009 at 4:36 pm

I saw some reusable bags that look even better. The design is much better, the patterns are cuter and the price is even cheaper. Check out GoGreenPouches.com

10 | Meg

February 27th, 2009 at 6:38 am

Mary, Thanks for the pointer, I hadn’t seen those yet. Those look great, too, there are some cute patterns and the purple butterfly bags are my favorite! I love seeing all the new products with the goal of reducing waste. THanks for helping spread the word!

11 | Dawn

March 3rd, 2009 at 7:05 pm

Hi,
I am a huge fan of happy sacks (now called snack taxis). They come in fun designs that boys, girls and grown-ups like. I have put them in the washer and dryer and they have held up fine. I use them for snacks and sandwiches. The different sizes make it easy to fit them in a lunch box.

12 | Meg

March 4th, 2009 at 8:34 pm

Dawn, I am so glad you are happy with your reusable baggies… and thanks for letting us know of the name change! For those interested in checking out their line of products or ordering online, you should now visit the site http://www.snacktaxi.com Cute new name!! (I remembered they had run into trademark issue with their old name…).

13 | funmum

March 12th, 2009 at 1:26 pm

I have recently started using “wrap n mat” bags from http://www.bangalla.com and these are fantastic and really keep the bread fresh, the “happy snacks” look way to hard to get the sandwich in as well as to keep clean. Have a look at the bangalla website as it also has other great green products we use, like the tuckerbags and now green garbage bags which are wonderful. The less plastic used the better is my motto.

14 | Suzanne

May 8th, 2009 at 10:45 am

I love these bags! My kids have been using them almost daily for 8 months and they still look great! I usually turn them inside out and wipe them down or light washing in the sink is all they need.

15 | Meg

May 11th, 2009 at 7:26 pm

Suzanne, thanks for the great review on this product! It is good to hear they are holding up well after several months of use. Thanks for visiting!

16 | Mari

May 19th, 2009 at 10:12 am

http://www.reusablebags.com/store/lunch-bags-more-sandwich-snack-bags-c-4_13.html

You can get snackTAXIS and a wide selection of other sandwich and snack bags, mats, and pouches. Sometimes one design is better than another in some applications. Snack taxis are good for sandwiches and flat objects for example, whereas the stuff sacks (drawstring pouch style) are good for apples or a bunch of grapes.

17 | Meg

May 20th, 2009 at 7:00 pm

Mari,
Thanks for the pointer to more choices. You are correct that one type of bag typically won’t fit all. Probably best to buy a couple of different kinds and rotate through the ones you need depending on the lunch for the day. Thanks for visiting!
Meg

18 | Rochelle Lawton

September 10th, 2009 at 6:25 pm

Reusable sandwich bags rock! Finally a way to ditch the plastic bags for lunch. I bought some cute bags from http://www.earthsaks.com. They seemed a little bigger than the other ones on the market and there were tons of cut prints that both my son and daughter fell in love with. Glad to see new products like this come into the market!

19 | Meg

September 14th, 2009 at 6:30 am

Rochelle,
Thanks so much for visiting my blog and leaving a comment. I, too, love that there are so many great choices available for going waste-free with lunches. I checked out EarthSAKS–they do have several cute designs that would make just about any kid or grownup happy. I think their insulated lunch sacks look cute, too. Thanks for sharing and hope you will visit again!
Meg

20 | Sarah

November 13th, 2009 at 7:48 pm

I got my happ-sack for Christmas last year and didn’t really think to use it until the start of this school year. I’m a teenage vegetarian and I love using my happy-sack! It works well, washes easy and keeps food well. The only thing is use it for one-day types of food. I stored almonds for two days. The first day, great, the second day, the almonds got chewy. But that’s hardly a price to pay for something so great!

21 | Meg

November 17th, 2009 at 11:56 am

Sarah,
Thanks for your input on the Happy Sacks! It is always great to get input from hands-on users of various eco lunch box products. I love that you are an environmentally concerned teenager, and hope that you have a like-minded peer group. Eating vegetarian is another great way you are helping the environment Hope to see you back at xobobox soon!
Meg

December 9th, 2009 at 5:38 pm

We just completed a study showing that the average U.S. family packing a lunch with throw-aways generates approximately 4,320 pieces of trash annually. As we know, it’s totally avoidable! Check out the study at: http://www.ecolunchboxes.com/why_news_waste_study_2009.html

23 | Meg

December 20th, 2009 at 6:05 pm

Sandra,
Thanks for your comment and link to the great chart on the money saved by packing with reusable lunch products. Packing waste free is both cost effective and great for the planet. Your lunchboxes look neat! Hope you will visit xobobox again
Happy holidays!
Meg

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About

I'm Meg, a stay home Mom of 3 interested in promoting healthy, low waste lunches for kids and grownups. I aim to present good recipe ideas for packed lunches and to analyze lunchbox products currently available. I encourage involving your kids in all aspects of food. From gardening, to nutrition, to enjoying recipes and making some up... there is a lot to learn and enjoy. Cooking with kids in the kitchen is both spectacularly messy and fun, and generally well worth the extra cleanup time...

If you have an idea for this website or would like to contribute an article to my blog, please contact me! I am also happy to review products if you would like to send me a sample. I am always looking for new information, products, and ideas to keep lunchtime fun and healthy.