[mikem170]

I'll try to clarify/refine where I'm coming from: Systemically we as a culture care more about our quick cheese than we do about the hundred of years of trash. Ideally the price of the fancy cheese and everything else should include the cost of disposal, and right now it doesn't, and that's not right.

Would you agree?

I do believe that our culture is too focused on economic efficiency, and ignoring numerous consequences of that. That might be a separate discussion?

[souprock]

Quality packaging reduces spoilage, and thus reduces waste. A stack of slices wrapped up by a deli will spoil long before individually sealed slices.

Longer shelf life enables efficient shipping and shopping, which reduces trips taken. This counts towards fuel use, road wear, and vehicle wear.

Counting both the waste and the product that gets used, the total cost is a rough approximation of environmental impact. The less you spend, the lower your impact.