Beeswax wraps in the kitchen: how to use them (and when they beat cling film)

Cling film has covered kitchen bowls for over fifty years. Beeswax wraps do much of the same job, without single-use plastic. Here is the full guide to using them, and an honest list of when cling film still wins.

What is beeswax wrap?

Beeswax wrap is a sheet of cotton coated with beeswax. The wax makes the fabric slightly tacky and mouldable when it is warmed by your hands, and unlike plastic, it lets the food breathe, so moisture escapes instead of turning into condensation.

A set contains three wraps in different sizes (S, M and L): the small ones fit half a lemon or an avocado, the large ones cover a whole bowl. With the right care, each wrap is reusable for around 12 months, and when it finally wears out, it can be composted: it is cotton, beeswax and tree resin.

How to use beeswax wraps, step by step

1. 1
   Choose the right size

   The wrap should extend a few centimetres beyond what you are covering, so you have edges to fold around.

2. 2
   Warm the wrap between your hands

   Ten to twenty seconds is enough. The wax softens from the warmth of your hands, and the wrap becomes as pliable as thick paper.

3. 3
   Shape it around the food or over the bowl

   Press the edges down along the side of the bowl, fold the wrap around the block of cheese, or make a small parcel of the bread slices for a packed lunch.

4. 4
   Hold for a few seconds

   As the wax cools, the wrap sticks on its own and forms a snug but breathable seal.

Typical uses: cover the bowl of dinner leftovers, wrap the cheese instead of using plastic, lay a small wrap over the cut face of half a cucumber, or fold a parcel around food for outings and packed lunches.

What is it good for, and what is it not?

If you need to store raw meat or raw fish, use a glass container with a tight lid, or cling film. That is safer.

And the bread? It belongs in a bread bag, and the beeswax wraps handle the rest of the kitchen. The Vokshus bread bag is made on the same principle: cotton and linen with beeswax that lets the bread breathe.

Care: cold wash and air drying

Rinse the wrap in cold water with a small dab of mild soap, rub gently with your fingers and hang it to air dry over a drying rack. Never hot water, never the dishwasher, never the tumble dryer: heat melts the wax. The principle is the same as in the guide on how to wash a beeswax bread bag.

With regular use and the right care, a wrap lasts around 12 months. That is why the set is also available as a subscription with a discount and free delivery, so new wraps arrive in the post about when the old ones are ready for the compost.

The environmental gain: less single-use plastic

Cling film is used once and thrown away, and it is practically impossible to recycle, because it is thin, dirty and sticky. On top of that comes microplastics: plastic in direct contact with food can shed tiny particles whose long-term effects we still do not fully understand.

A reusable wrap replaces roll after roll of film over the year. That makes beeswax wraps one of the easiest swaps in a plastic-free kitchen: it changes what is in the drawer, not the way you cook.

When cling film is actually fine

Honestly: cling film still has a few jobs. Raw meat and raw fish, marinating in the fridge, and food that will sit in the freezer for many months: there, plastic or glass with a tight lid does the job better and more safely.

The point is not to go completely plastic-free overnight, but to stop using single-use plastic where a reusable wrap does the job just as well. And that is on most days in an ordinary kitchen.

Frequently asked questions