Working mother-of-three Mia Swainson doesn't feel guilty about buying biscuits wrapped in plastic - something her family enjoys - because she's busy. She tries to minimise her use of plastics elsewhere.

Ms Swainson started to reduce her plastic waste in 2017 when she discovered soft plastic recycling was on offer at most supermarkets. The family already composted food waste, so after removing all that from her bin she said it was easy to see what was left.

From there, she picked things off one by one.

"I spoke to a friend who is an expert in it, and she said start with the big four," Ms Swainson said.

"Refuse straws, it's really easy if you don't have a particular medical condition. We don't buy straws and we don't use them at cafes.

"The second was plastic water bottles, and that's just about being a bit more organised and disciplined.

"Then it's disposable coffee cups. You just take your own cup, or sit down at a cafe and have your coffee.

"And plastic bags, which is pretty easy. I get my shopping delivered and order online, and I can choose not to have it come in bags."

Ms Swainson said she goes to the farmer's market every Saturday to buy produce, "which is as much about the plastic waste as it is about the quality".

She said on the odd occasion plastic wrap ends up in the house, she rinses it in warm soapy water and reuses it.

"Glad wrap works fine after many washes. My grandma used to do it when I was a kid and I used to think she was crazy, but now I understand," she said.

It's usually used to protect the cheese, she said, as beeswax wrap "doesn't cut it" for that.

"I have a real motto of take it one step at a time," Ms Swainson said.

"Don't feel you have to cut it all out at once."

Ms Swainson said it was important to focus on the good you're doing by cutting out some plastic waste, rather than feel guilty for the pieces that slip through.

"Trying not to feel guilty is really important, otherwise the whole thing gets through away."

Chris Riedy is professor of Sustainability Governance at the Institute for Sustainable Futures at University of Technology in Sydney. He said as we learn more about the negative impacts of plastic on personal health and ecosystems, it made sense to reduce the use of it in every day life.

"Plastic production contributes to global warming, waste plastics in the ocean can kill marine animals and many people are understandably concerned about the health effects of micro-plastics in our food and water," Professor Riedy said.

"It makes sense to reduce our use of plastic, but taking the first steps can be hard. After all, plastic is all around us and using it is a habit that is hard to break."

But, he said there were things that made breaking the plastic habit easier.

"First, tell someone close to you what you're doing. Ideally, convince them to do it too. Then, you can hold each other accountable. It's much easier to establish a new practice if someone else is helping to keep you honest. Second, don't be too ambitious. Trying to break a lot of habits at once can end up being too much. Start with one type of plastic - like shopping bags - and move on to another once your new habit is established."

And finally, setting a daily reminder on your smartphone or computer was a great way to keep you paying attention. "A daily reminder will keep you focused. By the time it starts to get annoying, you might find your new habit is in place."