I usually put my horse’s feed + supps in ziploc bags to go to shows, or for when I’m away and someone else feeds, but can’t stand the idea of all the plastic waste (even reusing them several times). Any other ideas that are better for the environment?
I know. I find the zips fail pretty fast with barn or feed dust.
You can also get plastic jars or tupperwear but these are bulky and add weight.
Maybe somethung like nylon stuff sacks for outdoor gear, with locking draw strings?
Ziplok boxes last for literally years and are recyclable in the very end. Even when the corner tab eventually breaks off the lids are still functional and by that time they’re broken in enough to not need the tab to prise the lids off. I’ve had most of mine for 8 years and they’re still going strong.
Take a baggie of feed with you to the store to judge the right size for your horse’s rations.
Even better - ask your barnmates to save inevitable supplement containers of various sizes depending on what your needs are.
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We have used washable silicone bags with zippers. BPA free and super easy to clean. We loved them! I’ll be getting more soon for an up coming show 
https://www.amazon.com/Reusable-Storage-Leakproof-Silicone-Sandwich/dp/B093RJP56P/ref=sr_1_8?crid=3SYEFU350813P&dchild=1&keywords=reusable+ziploc+bags+silicone&qid=1627494071&sprefix=reusable+%2Caps%2C191&sr=8-8
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I love the ziploc twist top containers. The medium size fits perfectly in smartpak drawers… but I think they only hold 4 cups so I guess it depends on how much grain you feed.
I have purchased some of those silicon zipper bags and the zippers are not easy to keep working if you use them for anything that has small particles.
I was using them for lunches to put things like pretzels in, but after just a couple of months I was told that the pretzels/contents seemed stale by lunch time because the zippers did not seal shut anymore. No amount of washing fixed the problem.
They were crazy expensive for the amount of successful use we got out of them. They certainly were not leak proof. Not doing that again.
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Ive been using the plastic cream containers with lids for my high qty grain horse and sour cream containers for my fatties. Not horrible and toy kids appreciate eating the ice cream in a hurry if needed.
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Ziploc cups for sups and plastic paint buckets with lids for individual meal portions. My cups are old and are still good.
That’s odd. The ones we had sealed so well even after 6 months, they were still hard to open. I wonder if we got different brands?
How about trying these drawstring cloth bags? Machine washable, and you could even dye them different colors for different horse or supplement types.
https://www.uline.com/Product/Detail/S-24093/Fabric-Bags/Cotton-Pouches-6-x-10
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Same, especially if it helps to see what’s inside.
Twist lists win every day over anything you have to peel open when it’s cold and you have gloves on.
But in reality I actually use small supplement containers, so they were “free with purchase” LOL Same same - a small container with a twist on lid
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The twist on containers would be my choice too.
Yeah I love the twist tops, and use the ziploc mini square containers for daily supps, but AFAIK there are no 2.5 gallon Glad or Ziploc boxes/containers (I feed a lot of shredded beet and it takes a 2.5g ziploc to hold it) unless you buy heavier duty Rubbermaid ones at about $16 each. Which, over time, is probably going to be cost effective.
Nylon drawstring bags are a good idea, but harder to fill. I like these ones - lots of colors!
This isn’t exactly what you asked for, but I always use a storage container. You could either get one large one to store all of your meals, or several smaller ones if you want to pre-portion them out. They make them pretty small. Here is a 2.5 gallon one from home depot for less than $5 each.
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Add me to the Ziplock twist crew – but I also recycle MSM and Assuregard containers which are usually anywhere from 1 to 4qt sizes. They are the perfect size for a couple quarts of grain and great for setting up ahead of time but keeping it airtight.
I pre-pack a week of supplements at a time, 14 containers. I use these amber screw-top plastic jars.
Amber because my horse’s personal pharmacist (aka my husband) advised that to prevent light degradation of one of his more sensitive medications. Screw-top because the little plastic Ziploc snap top container tops would crack over time. The barn staff like them because they’re easy to work with, even with gloves, and if you drop one on the floor the lid doesn’t come off. The 8oz size is perfect for the volume of stuff I feed.
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I bought Betty Crocker brand 2-cup twist tops from the Dollar Tree 3/$1, so I have a one-month supply for each horse. They work great for supplements. For smaller grain rations, I think they have similar in quart sizes, maybe 2/$1. I’ve been using my first set for three years and have only had two break, so definitely going through less plastic than if I was bagging my horses’ supplements.
You could always channel your inner pony clubber and put all your feed in individual brown paper bags taped shut and labeled with a sharpie. Pony Club doesn’t allow plastic individual feed containers due to the chance of mold. It actually works out just fine and you can even compost the bags in the manure pile.
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If you know anyone who works in a restaurant, hit them up for appropriately sized buckets.
Man, that’s the second crazy PC story in the past 2 days! Apparently they also don’t allow Holy Shit Straps on dressage saddles too!
I think their reasoning is faulty (when the outside of a brown bag gets damp, it can ruin good feed, but when outside of a plastic container gets damp, the feed stays the same as it was when you put it in!) And then there’s the single use aspect - we kill trees to provide bedding, do we really need to kill trees to put their feed in single use bags that aren’t even going to protect feed anyway?
Sigh.
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