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“Trash.” “Just junk.” “Landfill fodder!” These are just a few of the messages I received after expressing my distaste for goody bags on social media. While some parents made exceptions for thoughtfully assembled treats, most echoed my sentiments: goody bags are a massive waste.
It feels like my home has been overrun. There’s a huge Ziploc bag of sugary sweets in my kitchen, and our office supply drawer is overflowing with cheap novelty pencils, erasers, and tiny packs of crayons. If you dig through my son’s toy bins, you’ll find a trove of flimsy plastic toys — almost all broken or incomplete. Strangely enough, most of this clutter has appeared since school started in September, and my son hasn’t even attended a single party!
I’ve never liked goody bags. For my son’s birthdays, I’ve always searched for take-home treats that minimize my eco-guilt (think paper bags filled with marshmallows or handmade wooden bead necklaces). While this may make me seem snobby or a joy-killer, the sheer waste of typical party favors drives me insane. Almost everything my son brings home ends up in the trash. It’s not only wasteful but also a poor use of parents’ money. Until now, I’ve just sighed and accepted it.
However, the 2020-21 school year left me feeling even more frustrated. Last year, our school put a pause on classroom celebrations due to COVID-19. I understood that the kids missed cupcakes, and it seemed silly to ban treats when they were taking off their masks to eat. Still, I was relieved to skip the goody bags that often came with those parties.
Now that the party ban has been lifted, we’re experiencing an explosion of waste. The first parent to break the seal offered donuts for their child’s birthday, but by the second class celebration, someone decided goody bags were necessary. Since then, no birthday goes by without a plastic bag filled with, you guessed it, junk: mini containers of slime, sticky hands that pick up dirt, and “useful” plastic bookmarks.
My son is already dreaming up extravagant treats for his classmates this Valentine’s Day. I’m not a total Grinch; we’ll take part in the class card exchange, and I might include a piece of candy, but no goody bag favors will come from us. I’m genuinely dreading the trinkets he’ll bring home.
Can we all agree to say, “Enough!”? It’s 2022, and we are clearly facing a climate emergency. As birthday parties and classroom celebrations resume, I urge my fellow parents to stop purchasing cheap, disposable items that provide only fleeting joy. This fosters a throwaway culture and promotes mindless consumption.
It’s also a vicious cycle: once one child brings goody bags, others feel pressured to do the same, creating an arms race of extravagance. And please, let’s not substitute plastic junk with “eco-friendly” alternatives that are still a waste of money and resources; those packets of seeds or natural beeswax crayons still contribute to the problem. So, who’s with me? Can we put an end to this goody bag madness? Let’s keep the candy and cupcakes but ditch the junk.
One last thought: if you, like me, have a growing stash of these plastic toys, consider this brilliant idea from my friend Mia Thompson. Save the party favors your child collects throughout the year and use them to fill a piñata for your own child’s birthday. At least then, those unwanted toys will get a second life. Surely we have enough of them to last until our kids forget this wasteful tradition?
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- Are goody bags necessary at parties?
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- How to minimize party waste
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In summary, the goody bag trend has spiraled into a wasteful practice that contributes to our growing climate crisis. It’s time for parents to rethink these disposable items and encourage a more sustainable approach to celebrations.