Plastic inside or outside the lid – What is best?
One essential product our customers have been asking for since the very start of our business in 2006 is an insulated stainless steel thermos with a stainless steel lid. All the thermal containers at the time were either made entirely of plastic or made with stainless steel but with a lid with a plastic interior.
We did not like the idea of hot food touching plastic because of the potentially harmful migration of plastic additives into the food. So during a trip to Taiwan in early 2010, we found a manufacturer who offered a thermos that almost met our needs, but not completely. The insulated container was made of stainless steel and the lid had a stainless steel interior, but the outside of the lid was plastic. Here is a photo taken from our 2012 paper catalog, and featuring our son who was 9 years-old at the time (he just turned 18 – yikes – time flies!) eating out of that thermos we were carrying at the time.
Offering a Thermal container that is Not Optimal
We eventually stopped selling this thermal container when Klean Kanteen started offering an all stainless steel insulated food container with stainless steel on the interior lid. Unfortunately, a few years after starting to sell this cool thermos, the company changed the interior to plastic without informing its resellers. 
We started getting complaints from customers that the inside was now plastic. This was actually worse than the previous option we were offering where the plastic was just on the outside. So we switched again, this time to Lunchbots who was offering a thermal container with a plastic lid but at least the interior was stainless steel.
Quest for the Perfect Plastic-Free Thermal container
Meanwhile, we were contacting suppliers and trying to find the perfect thermos. One that would be all stainless steel, inside and outside, and that would keep food warm just long enough to have a warm soup at lunch. It has arrived: Introducing the 350 ml (11 oz) all stainless steel thermal container by Life Without Plastic. Phew, finally!
Being able to offer our customers this insulated food container is the reason why we continue to do what we do. We have high standards, because we understand the science well. We know that hot food, oily food, acidic food in contact with plastic tends to encourage the migration of plastic additive chemicals. In the book we published in December 2017, Life Without Plastic: The Practical Step-by-Step Guide to Avoiding Plastic to Keep Your Family and the Planet Healthy we go into great detail about the dangers of plastic chemicals — especially hormone-disrupting ones — on human health. Having access to healthy alternatives is what we thrive on.
You will find this awesome thermos on our website and you can ask your favorite retailer to stock it for your benefit and the benefit of others. It is truly one of a kind.
Chantal Plamondon, Co-Founder