I've been playing Magic for over 20 years, since I was a wee kid, and have a huge nostalgic love for it. I'm also kind of crazily passionate about waste reduction. For example, this year I'm trying to limit all my non-recyclable waste generated to a single box about a cubic foot in size, and avoiding plastic whenever possible.
It hasn't taken long to realize that...yeah, Magic is a pretty tough hobby for a zero waste lifestyle. So many booster pack wrappers opened and thrown away, no chance of recycling (and even when recyled, plastic can only last a few cycles before ending up in a landfill or poisoning oceans). And because of the economics of stores opening boxes for singles, if I buy a single worth $12 there's the hidden waste behind the scenes of a store opening roughly 4 packs and throwing away the packaging for those singles. Plus, the cards themselves are apparently not recyclable.
It would be great if they could introduce recyclable or compostable paper packaging for booster packs some day, but I reckon the critical mass of players who would actually care just isn't there yet.
Luckily I have a huge collection and can mostly just trade for stuff I want instead of buying new cards. I mostly just play Commander, too, so I only need the occasional new jank rare. For the draft itch, I can just cube draft.
I also realized, funny enough, that the Commander decks are probably one of the best products from Wizards in terms of zero waste. Their business model is largely built on selling booster packs that have 1-2 actually good and playable cards, with the rest of itt junk to be thrown away, or at best languish in a bulk bin. The Commander decks, though, aspire to just give you only the good playable cards and skip the chaff (for the most part, right?)
Its a physical/tangible product so there is going to be waste.
I see 2 solutions.
1. Sell out of your paper collection and play online exclusively. Technically your zero waste.
2. RECYCLE your waste product or repurpose it.
I for one don't want to see Magic going even more "PC" and go with recyclable packaging that all of a sudden has us paying 50 cents to a dollar more per booster. You already get screwed enough as it is. Good luck with whatever you decide.
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Playing since 1994: Currently MAGS (HomeBrew),Standard & Pauper (Pioneer and Modern are degenerate trash formats)
STOP using "dude/bro" as a pejorative or insult. Grow up.
Margaret Thatcher: “The problem with socialism is that you eventually run out of other people's money.”
Benjamin Franklin: "Those who would give up essential Liberty, to purchase a little temporary Safety, deserve neither Liberty nor Safety."
Martin Luther King Jr.: "I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin, but by the content of their character."
I really wouldn't mind recyclable boosters. The amount of trash generated is a bit disturbing to see during pre releases.
The cards themselves could be made with cheaper recyclable stock. They are what they are today because originally sleeves weren't a thing, and the cards had to be tough enough to withstand shuffling like poker cards and not wear out due to constant use. Plus, they're smooth to enable cards to slide against each other.
But very few people shuffle MTG cards like poker cards these days, even less playing without some sort of sleeve.
Yeah, opening a booster from a prerelease box which was itself individually wrapped in plastic which was delivered in a box of like ten, each box of ten also wrapped in plastic... It's pretty disturbing if I've got my eco-brain active when I'm building my deck.
Even something like paper wrapping would probably cause less long-term problems, right?
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“Tell me who you walk with, and I'll tell you who you are.” Esmeralda Santiago Art is life itself.
The cards themselves could be made with cheaper recyclable stock. They are what they are today because originally sleeves weren't a thing, and the cards had to be tough enough to withstand shuffling like poker cards and not wear out due to constant use. Plus, they're smooth to enable cards to slide against each other.
I'm sorry, but no card manufacturer of any ilk should ever produce their cards with the intent of using protective sleeves. Protective sleeves have been, and should always be, considered as supplemental. Recyclable, I understand. To make them with such low grade material as to have to sleeve them, that's just ripping people off.
Wizards tried paper boosters for Modern Masters 2015, but there were some problems with the way the packs were made, and Wizards said feedback was not positive.
Given the thousands and thousands of boxes that are cracked instantly by shops, it would really make a ton of sense for WOTC to sell distributors booster boxes with all of the cards wrapped in a single (or 3, one for each column of packs) wrapped package. This would greatly reduce the production costs of those boxes and would increase the efficiency of stores cracking open boxes to sell singles at retail AND it would be better for the environment. Literally, everyone wins in every way. All WOTC has to do is organize it.
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It hasn't taken long to realize that...yeah, Magic is a pretty tough hobby for a zero waste lifestyle. So many booster pack wrappers opened and thrown away, no chance of recycling (and even when recyled, plastic can only last a few cycles before ending up in a landfill or poisoning oceans). And because of the economics of stores opening boxes for singles, if I buy a single worth $12 there's the hidden waste behind the scenes of a store opening roughly 4 packs and throwing away the packaging for those singles. Plus, the cards themselves are apparently not recyclable.
It would be great if they could introduce recyclable or compostable paper packaging for booster packs some day, but I reckon the critical mass of players who would actually care just isn't there yet.
Luckily I have a huge collection and can mostly just trade for stuff I want instead of buying new cards. I mostly just play Commander, too, so I only need the occasional new jank rare. For the draft itch, I can just cube draft.
I also realized, funny enough, that the Commander decks are probably one of the best products from Wizards in terms of zero waste. Their business model is largely built on selling booster packs that have 1-2 actually good and playable cards, with the rest of itt junk to be thrown away, or at best languish in a bulk bin. The Commander decks, though, aspire to just give you only the good playable cards and skip the chaff (for the most part, right?)
Corrupt Control B | Burn R | UG Turbofog UG | White Weenie W | GW Tethmos WG | BG Cycling Combo BG
Enchantress GBW | Colorless Tron C | Red Deck Wins R | UG Madness UG | Mono-G Tron G | UR Puzzlehorns UR
Rhystic Tron WU| WU Prowess WU | BR Reanimator BR | Mono-R Control R | Stompy G | Temur Tron URG
Mardu Infinite Priest WBR | 85-Card Dredge BRG | Elves GU | Boros Bully RW | Jeskai Familiars RWU
I see 2 solutions.
1. Sell out of your paper collection and play online exclusively. Technically your zero waste.
2. RECYCLE your waste product or repurpose it.
I for one don't want to see Magic going even more "PC" and go with recyclable packaging that all of a sudden has us paying 50 cents to a dollar more per booster. You already get screwed enough as it is. Good luck with whatever you decide.
STOP using "dude/bro" as a pejorative or insult. Grow up.
Margaret Thatcher: “The problem with socialism is that you eventually run out of other people's money.”
Benjamin Franklin: "Those who would give up essential Liberty, to purchase a little temporary Safety, deserve neither Liberty nor Safety."
Martin Luther King Jr.: "I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin, but by the content of their character."
The cards themselves could be made with cheaper recyclable stock. They are what they are today because originally sleeves weren't a thing, and the cards had to be tough enough to withstand shuffling like poker cards and not wear out due to constant use. Plus, they're smooth to enable cards to slide against each other.
But very few people shuffle MTG cards like poker cards these days, even less playing without some sort of sleeve.
"Sometimes, the situation is outracing a threat, sometimes it's ignoring it, and sometimes it involves sideboarding in 4x Hope//Pray." --Doug Linn
Even something like paper wrapping would probably cause less long-term problems, right?
Art is life itself.
I'm sorry, but no card manufacturer of any ilk should ever produce their cards with the intent of using protective sleeves. Protective sleeves have been, and should always be, considered as supplemental. Recyclable, I understand. To make them with such low grade material as to have to sleeve them, that's just ripping people off.