Advantages and disadvantages of plastic food packaging
Lesson details
Learning outcome
I can describe advantages and disadvantages of plastic food packaging.
Key learning points
- Many foods are sold packaged in plastic, which is usually made from non-renewable resources such as fossil fuels
- Plastic waste in landfills and oceans is a pollutant that takes a long time to degrade and can harm organisms
- Biodegradable bioplastics made from renewable resources are a sustainable alternative to traditional plastic packaging
- Plastic packaging helps prevents food spoilage and reduces food waste
- We must weigh up the benefits of using plastic packaging against emissions from production and damage to biodiversity
Keywords
Plastic - a man-made material, usually made from fossil fuels
Pollutant - a substance that can harm living organisms when it is released into an ecosystem
Biodiversity - the range of different living organisms (species) in an ecosystem
Biodegradable - can be broken down by living organisms, including microorganisms
Sustainable - can be carried out over a long period of time with little or no negative impact on the environment
Common misconception
Thinking that plastic food packaging only has disadvantages, due to its effects as a pollutant in oceans and land ecosystems.
This lesson explores the advantages of plastic packaging in reducing food waste, alongside the risks it can pose to biodiversity.
Teacher tip
Pupils may not feel they have much agency in being able to reduce the use and impacts of plastic food packaging. This issue is addressed in Task B.
Licence
Lesson video
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Prior knowledge starter quiz
6 Questions
Q1.Which of these is not an example of a fossil fuel?
Q2.What is a pollutant?
Q3.An activity is sustainable if …
Q4.According to the bar chart, which food has the lowest carbon footprint of greenhouse gas emissions?
Q5.According to the bar chart, which stage of producing chocolate contributes the most emissions to chocolate’s carbon footprint?
Q6.The word means the range of different species living in a place.
Assessment exit quiz
6 Questions
Q1.Match each word to its correct definition.
Q2.True or false? A biodegradable material can be broken down by living organisms e.g. bacteria
Q3.Which of these types of food packaging is biodegradable?
Q4.What can biodegradable bioplastic be made from?
Q5.Who identifies how plastic food packaging can help to limit climate change?
Q6.True or false? Eating fruit and vegetables instead of meat will reduce emissions more than buying food without plastic packaging.
To help you plan your 9 science lesson on: Advantages and disadvantages of plastic food packaging, download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs...
To help you plan your 9 science lesson on: Advantages and disadvantages of plastic food packaging, download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs.
The starter quiz will activate and check your pupils' prior knowledge, with versions available both with and without answers in PDF format.
We use learning cycles to break down learning into key concepts or ideas linked to the learning outcome. Each learning cycle features explanations with checks for understanding and practice tasks with feedback. All of this is found in our slide decks, ready for you to download and edit. The practice tasks are also available as printable worksheets and some lessons have additional materials with extra material you might need for teaching the lesson.
The assessment exit quiz will test your pupils' understanding of the key learning points.
Our video is a tool for planning, showing how other teachers might teach the lesson, offering helpful tips, modelled explanations and inspiration for your own delivery in the classroom. Plus, you can set it as homework or revision for pupils and keep their learning on track by sharing an online pupil version of this lesson.
Explore more key stage 3 science lessons from the Climate change and biodiversity unit, dive into the full secondary science curriculum, or learn more about lesson planning.