- in Green Home by Alexis Rodrigo
Green Shopping 101
If you want to lead a green lifestyle, don’t forget to go green with your grocery shopping. Here are some tips and suggestions for making your supermarket experience as green as possible.
1. Cloth bags
Most grocery stores sell these for a low price. If not, simply use your own cloth totes or re-use those brown paper shopping bags with handles. You can even make your own shopping bag from old clothes, blankets, or other materials. Using your own totes reduces the use of plastic grocery bags, which endanger sea life when dumped in oceans and do not biodegrade in landfills.
2. Choose your grocery store wisely
Look for a grocery store that sells local produce, or, if possible, shop at a locally owned grocery. Food that is grown locally does not require a lot of gasoline or jet fuel to get from the farm across the globe to your store. Check with the policies of your grocery store regarding recycling as well. Do they have a recycling bin for customers to put their used plastic bags in? Choose stores that sell organic produce, too. Organically grown produce is far better for the environment, as it does not involve the use of dangerous agrichemicals.
3. Only pay for what’s necessary
This is an important aspect in green shopping, and it is one of the most neglected. We often pay for unnecessary things without thinking, but everything from packaging to preservatives are not necessary for a healthy diet and can generate a lot of waste when packaging is thrown away. Here are some things to keep in mind when trying to make your dollar go as far as possible and reduce waste.
-Buy in bulk. Bulk foods sold in bins do not have packaging, so you are paying for the food only. Bulk buying can also include large containers of canned goods or cereal that can be divided up into individual serving containers at home (re-usable containers of course). Not buying individualized portions reduces your consumption of packaging materials such as plastic, metal and paper.
-Whole foods are foods in their most basic form, with no additives or unwanted ingredients to deal with. When you buy whole foods, you are not paying for the preparation and packaging.
-Read labels – don’t pay for ingredients you don’t need or that are bad for the environment.
4. Plan your meals and make a list
Meal planning can reduce your waste quite a bit. When you plan meals, make a list according to what you’ll need for those meals and nothing more. This prevents impulsive spending and over-buying, and generates less waste than simply buying whatever looks good.
5. Sales and stocking up
Although sticking to your list has many advantages, keep an eye out for sales and stock up when you can. While you are shopping for your meals you have planned for the week, you can do a bit of the reverse – plan your next week’s meals based on what was on sale! The more you can buy in one trip, the less gas you will use making multiple trips to the grocery store.
Whether you are just getting started with your green shopping commitment or are looking for ways to improve your green lifestyle, keeping the above tips in mind should help.
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