Wrapping paper generates millions of lbs of waste every year – here’s some sustainable alternatives

Have yourself a sustainable, eco-friendly Christmas this year.

That's how the song goes, right? Even if it doesn't, it should do, because when it comes to waste, Christmas is absolutely the time of year when you're going to end up throwing out almost as much as you get. You know the feeling: the bins are full before the morning's over, the wrapping paper's discarded the second it's torn off, the food that has been cooked but hasn't made it to anybody's mouths is unfortunately left for the dogs. It's a wonderful time of year, but it's also an incredibly wasteful one. And although we'd all like to have the most eco-friendly festive season we could muster, sometimes it's difficult to know where to start. So why don't we start with wrapping paper? According to the guys over at Eco Freek, the US spends $7 billion on wrapping paper every single year. In order to meet this demand, 4.6 billion lbs of the stuff is manufactured, and then 2.3 million lbs of it ends up in landfills at the end of the year. Wasteful, indeed. And although everybody wants their Christmas presents to look nice and pretty, there are other ways to achieve such aesthetics that don't involve wasting so much wrapping paper. And thankfully, Eco Freek have compiled a list of ways to make it easier to do just that. First, you need to make sure that the wrapping paper you're using is recyclable. Paper that can be successfully scrunched into a ball and is plain with no texture usually is. However, metallic wrapping paper, glittery wrapping paper, or wrapping paper made from foil or velvet - isn't. Alternatively, if you were looking for something to wrap your presents in that doesn't involve buying any wrapping paper at all, look no further than the following options:

• Reusable gift bags
• Old posters
• Reusable paper bags
• Newspaper
• Old maps
• Old calendars
• Shoe boxes

Have a merry, recyclable Christmas. You deserve it.