Food packaging is not exactly sustainable. After unloading your groceries, you’ve probably accumulated lots of plastic bags and stuck them inside another plastic bag. Until stores offer more sustainable packaging, the best thing we can do is cut down on single-use plastics as much as possible.

While it may not be possible to eliminate single-use plastics from your home, you can repurpose them and extend their life a little longer. For example, put those mesh bags to good use and make a scrubbie out of them! Poly Woven Bags

You’ll need four empty mesh bags to make your own scrubbie. Make your scrubbie after you’ve unloaded all your groceries, or save mesh bags over time until you have enough. It’s totally OK if one of the mesh bags is stringy or broken—just use that bag for the center. Make sure to save your finest mesh piece for the outer layer.

Use your “new” scrubbie anywhere you’d use a store-bought one. It’s especially helpful for scrubbing food residue out of dishes that can’t go in your dishwasher. Fun fact—your dishwasher is actually better for the environment than washing dishes by hand.

When it gets dirty, simply soap it up and rinse it out—for a more sustainable approach, use a homemade cleaner or white vinegar.

BOPP Bags While this trick helps you get a little more life out of your mesh fruit bags, there are far better ways to reduce your plastic use. If you can, shop with reusable items like cotton produce bags.