A Reddit user who shopped at Germany’s Frankfurt Airport Duty Free shared a post lamenting the fact that the receipt they received was too long.
what happened?
The original poster shared a photo on the r/mildlyinfuriating subreddit showing a receipt as long as their forearm.
Photo credit: Reddit
They wrote: “Receipt I received after buying a bar of chocolate at the airport. It should be illegal to waste so much paper. The entire receipt is too long and does not fit the length of my arm.”
Reddit users were shocked, but not surprised, by the length of the receipt.
“What a waste of paper,” one person commented.
Another Reddit user added: “This is crazy.”
Why does the length of this receipt matter?
According to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, consumers generated 67.4 million tons of paper and cardboard waste in 2018. Of this amount, landfills received 17.2 million tons.
All this waste paper has a significant impact on the environment from generation to disposal.
Making paper requires vast amounts of resources, including trees, energy and water, which contributes to pollution and contributes to a warming planet, habitat loss and deforestation. When paper is wasted, as in printing receipts, the resources used to make the paper are also wasted, further exacerbating environmental pressures.
Receipts like this are also typically thrown in the trash, which means they end up in landfills, where they break down and release more carbon pollution, exacerbating the problem.
Have the relevant companies taken action on this?
The company name on the receipt is Gebr. Heinemann, a company that operates duty-free shops in airports, cruise ships and more, is far from the only company printing extra-long receipts. Some people in the comments on the Reddit post thought at first glance that the receipts were from CVS, which is known for its incredibly long receipts.
It’s unclear whether this is a common problem at Heinemann duty-free stores or something specific to this location.
While The Cool Down couldn’t find any specific action taken on the receipts, Heinemann makes a number of sustainability commitments on its website.
The company is a member of the United Nations Global Compact, a responsible corporate governance initiative. It is also a member of the Science-Based Targets Initiative, a partnership between multiple organizations to help private sector organizations develop science-based pollution reduction targets.
The company’s 2024 annual report said that through green energy and new heating systems, scope 1 and scope 2 pollution emissions have been reduced by 50% compared with 2019. The company has also begun focusing on reducing pollution within its supply chain, specifically its transportation practices.
What can I do to help reduce paper waste?
One of the best ways to reduce paper waste is to recycle as many paper products as possible. While it’s impossible to recycle every piece of paper in a household, most recycling centers accept mixed paper, newspapers and paper packaging.
Simple product exchanges within the household can also help. Instead of using paper plates, you can use regular plates. When it comes to toilet paper, there are several companies that offer recycled paper or bamboo toilet paper. Meanwhile, reusable napkins and cloth towels can replace paper napkins and paper towels.
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