Packaging—the material we use to put products in—is everywhere, especially at grocery and drug stores. Yogurt comes in plastic cups with aluminum tops covered by plastic lids. Razors are
in plastic cases wrapped in cardboard. Packaging is important—it keeps food fresh and safe to
eat. It protects products from damage. But it’s the greatest source of waste in many countries
around the world.
Packaging also hurts the environment. Packaging is made from many different materials.
Some of these materials, such as plastic, contain chemicals that pollute water and soil (dirt) and
are harmful to people and animals. In addition, to make packaging from paper, cardboard, and
wood, people must cut down trees. Fewer trees can lead to climate change and other serious
environmental problems. So what can we do to reduce all this packaging?
Everyone is concerned about packaging, including the people who use it the most,
manufacturers, people that create and package products. In the past, they overused packaging.
According to one government agency, manufacturers are beginning to reduce the amount of
packaging that they use. CDs are an example. In the past, they came in large cardboard
containers that were twice as big as the CDs inside them. Now, they come in small plastic boxes.
Soft drink manufacturers are putting drinks into thinner bottles and cans that use less material.
However, even though there is less waste from packaging, it’s still waste. We still have to do
something with it. Here’s what the average person can do: We can reduce the amount of
packaging that we buy, and when we do buy it, we can reuse it. We can reduce the amount of
packaging that we actually bring home by buying large-sized products that do more than one
thing, for example, laundry detergent that has fabric softener in it. We can reuse materials instead
of throwing them away. For example, we can use plastic or glass containers to store food, office
supplies, and other objects.
Reducing and reusing are just two ways to limit waste from packaging. There are many other
ways. Let’s all work together to reduce waste!

Which best describes the purpose and audience of this passage?
Multiple Choice
to inform packaging manufacturers of new ways to reduce the size of their packaging
to instruct government agencies in new ways to measure amounts of packaging
to entertain consumers by describing problems caused by small amounts of packaging
to persuade consumers to reduce the amount of packaging they use and throw away