Have to Haves for the Summer Barbecue

We’re starting to spend more lunch times outside now that school’s on hiatus (or we would, if it would stop raining in NY), and there’s that niggling feeling of eco-guilt over all the disposable dishes and utensils being used up on the picnics.

So I was more than willing to check out the new Earth Essentials line of picnic goodies from CVS when their PR rep came calling to Babble.

I can have fun with my daughter, AND be eco-friendly, I figured. Good news – they survived the Fourth of July barbecue, and I can actually give them the thumbs up. Made from sugarcane, the plates and bowls stood up to everything I threw their way (and more importantly, everything the kid loaded on!). Sturdier than your standard paper or plastic plate, they’re good for little kids who want to carry the plate full of macaroni salad and hot dog across the lawn – it won’t automatically flip, and a lip on the side helps with rollage.

They are a little pricier – standard for going green – at $2.50 for a 20 count of bowls, $2.50 for a 20 count of plates. In the end, that’s not too bad. Throw in the Earth Essentials air freshener line at $3.99 (on sale right now for $2.39) and my personal must-have for any barbecue involving kids, the biodegradable plastic bags at $4.79 for 13 gallon packs or $7.49 for the thirty gallon, and the you start totaling up.

But the lessons for the kids alone could make them totally worth it. So pack up your picnic over at CVS.