Particularly Preposterous Packaging Day

If you are one of those folks who has ever battled vainly to open a tightly sealed bottle of tablets – only to end up with a sprained wrist and an even worse headache, then you know just what this day is all about! Particularly Preposterous Packaging Day aims to lift the lid off of this kind of problem, resolving to do better in the world of packaging. 

History of Particularly Preposterous Packaging Day

Sometimes it seems that the manufacturing industry or the customer service folks are intentionally making the lives of their customers miserable – all while needlessly using up the earth’s resources. From tiny items sent in an enormous box to hard plastic clamshell seals that a normal human simply cannot get open, this is what Particularly Preposterous Packaging Day is all about. And what about that cashier at the grocery store who puts the gallons of milk (which has a built-in handle) in two or three bags, just because?

As well as wasting customers’ time, unnecessary over-packaging also wastes precious resources. What’s more, it leaves everyone with extra rubbish to dispose of. It’s time for the businesses and companies to wake up and start caring a bit more about the impact they are having, and Particularly Preposterous Packaging Day is just the time to do it.

Consumer Reports magazine has even gotten on board in the past, honoring the most ridiculous clamshell packaging products with an Oyster Award, to show how impossible their packaging is to get opened by an average consumer. In 2007, the Oral-B Sonic toothbrush won the prize.

Particularly Preposterous Packaging Day got its start as a lighthearted, tongue-in-cheek way for folks to poke fun at the silly and somewhat annoying way that certain packages make absolutely no sense. But it is also a day that allows consumers to speak up, voice their outrage and make a difference! 

How to Celebrate Particularly Preposterous Packaging Day

Celebrate this day in style and implement some of these ideas in observance of Particularly Preposterous Packaging Day:

Avoid Unnecessary Consumer Packaging

An ideal way to mark the occasion is to avoid unnecessary packaging as much as possible. Particularly Preposterous Packaging Day is a time to bypass burger cartons, say no to supermarket plastic bags and do some thinking outside the box!

Sometimes it takes a bit of extra preparation, but once it becomes a habit it can be really easy to remember to bring those reusable grocery bags or use a reusable coffee cup at Starbucks, because every little bit of effort helps in the cause. At the grocery store, people can bring their own packaging and buy from the loose or bulk aisle. Say “yes” to having a smaller carbon footprint and say “no” to preposterous packaging!

Notify the Manufacturer

One way to get super serious about this day is to take it to heart by calling or emailing the manufacturer or seller when this kind of ridiculous packaging takes place. If you are being forced to use knives or scissors to prise a toy or tool out of an impenetrable plastic case, don’t keep those feelings under wraps any longer. Let the company know that their way of packing items just isn’t the right way to go on Particularly Preposterous Packaging Day – or on any day, for that matter!

Reuse Packaging

Sure, it’s no fun to turn into Aunt Marge who used to save every single thing, but if it’s possible to reuse packaging even just once, it’s an incredible way to save money as well as natural resources.

For instance, when items ordered online come in a cardboard box, flatten it out and save it for wrapping birthday presents or for mailing something to a friend. Or save those little ribbons that household textiles come packaged in – either reuse them or give them to a friend who is a crafter. Wash out and reuse the zipper bags that certain foods come in. It’s easy to get creative with packaging!