Beeswax Wraps: a Tiny Step Towards a Greener Household
For years now people around the globe have been learning about ways to protect our planet, with environmental awareness growing rapidly. Thanks to this, we keep looking for environmentally sound alternatives to things we use in our everyday lives, and we’ve been rediscovering natural things that have been used in the past before we started using plastic for everything.
If you are someone who wants to make their household greener, you are probably thinking about starting to use beeswax cloths to wrap your food. One of the reasons why people have been able to ignore the dangers of using plastic so much for so long is that we like things that make our lives easier. And surely enough, plastic wraps are very easy to use. You just take some, cover your food, and then simply throw it away.
But, should our wish to make everything more comfortable, faster, and user-friendlier, really be the reason why we don’t make better choices? The natural and sustainable alternative to plastic wraps, beeswax wraps are generally made from organic cotton coated with beeswax, tree resin and organic jojoba. They are reusable, and definitely the better choice when it comes to protecting our planet. However, in order to reuse them, of course, you’ll have to take care of them and wash them after every use. A bit more work, but really worth the effort, and not just for the planet’s sake.
What Are the Advantages of Beeswax Wraps?
On a first glance, a cloth covering your food seems nonpractical, or even impossible to work. However, coated with beeswax, this cloth gets warmed up by your hands, allowing you to mould it in different shapes, around your food, as well as around different containers and vessels. The fact that they are easily mouldable makes them very practical because that means you can use them to easily cover up even odd-shaped foods or dishes.
One of the biggest concerns people have when it comes to using this natural and eco-friendly food wrap is whether it will work as good as a plastic wrap in keeping the food fresh. But when you start using a beeswax wrap, you’ll see that it can perform just as well, if not better.
Since it is made from cotton, beeswax wraps are breathable and can keep food fresh even longer. Of course, plastic wraps can do that as well, but because they are not breathable, they can accelerate mould growth. While, for instance, bread kept in a plastic wrap or a plastic bag can grow mould fast, wrapping it in a beeswax cloth, you can keep it really fresh for up to 5 days. Even the most delicate fruits, like lemons or avocados, can be kept fresh and juicy much longer this way. Beeswax food wraps are also cost-effective because with proper care they can last approximately one year.
Are Beeswax Wraps Hygienic?
Wax wraps should be washed after every use with cold water and soap since hot water can melt the wax. However, this doesn’t mean that they aren’t hygienic. In fact, just like other products of bees, like honey and propolis, the beeswax used to coat these wraps has antibacterial and antimicrobial properties, which makes them an ideal way to cover your food, and it speaks even more to the point of how good their performance is when it comes to preserving food. Furthermore, most of these wraps also contain jojoba oil, which also has antibacterial properties.
How Can You Use Beeswax Wraps?
There are many ways in which you can use beeswax wraps. Of course, you can use them just like you’d use plastic film, to wrap food. They can be used to wrap different fresh produce, such as vegetables, fruits, cheese, bread, as well as cooked meals, by covering bowls for example. You can keep a sandwich in a beeswax wrap, make pockets to store snacks, etc.
Furthermore, they can also use them to cover bottles, jars and other containers. Not only will they create a watertight seal, like creating a cork for a bottle, so that you can transport them without worrying about making a mess, but you can also use them to keep leftover drinks, like wine, fresh. Since it’s watertight, you can even turn a bees wax wrap into a safe container, to eat something out of it while camping, for instance, or create a water bowl for your dog.
Are There Any Downsides to Beeswax Wraps?
Since these wraps are reusable, they aren’t ideal for wrapping all types of food, for instance, raw meat, raw fish, etc. This is because you can’t wash the cloth with hot water to sanitise it after it’s been around the meat. Furthermore, you might want to also avoid foods that could stain the cloth. However, you can place these foods in a bowel and use the wrap as a cover.
