The Low Down On Green Living
January 28th, 2008
How To Tuesday: Green Grocery Shopping
Stumble it!
When you think about it, we support a pretty huge amount of environmental destruction when we shop at our local grocery store. We burn fuel getting there, we buy things wrapped in plastic shipped from all over the world, we create a steady stream of trash after we have consumed the items we bought– hey we may even bring home some toxic chemicals to spray around our homes! So there are plenty of ways in which we can all learn to reduce the environmental impact of our grocery shopping, and make ourselves healthier in the process. Here are 10 ways to get started.
1. When possible, go to your local farmer’s market rather than the big chain store. The farmer’s market offers primarily local produce, which means you won’t be buying blueberries shipped from Chile. And you can almost always find organic items, which means you are supporting chemical-free agriculture– that’s better for the Earth and for your health. Find a farmer’s market near you using the excellent site Local Harvet.org.
2. Buy as few things in plastic as possible– opt for metal or glass containers whenever you can. Plastic is made from a non-renewable resource (petroleum) and is often not fully recyclable (depending on where you live). Metal and glass, however, can be fully recycled almost everywhere.
3. Buy in bulk. Can you buy a big box of raisins rather than a lot of little boxes? Can you buy multiple servings of chicken and freeze some rather than buying lots of single servings? Remember that lots of little packages typically means lots of paper and plastic.
4. No surprise, bring your own shopping bags. To the question “Paper or plastic?” say “Neither.” Find reusable bags here.
5. Don’t use the plastic baggies for produce either– you can get great reusable mesh sacks for your greens. See them here.
6. When possible, buy organic and locally-sourced items. If you can’t get everything you need at a farmer’s market (most of us can’t), then try to do some reading at the grocery store. Can you buy food from your state rather than from across the globe? That means less fuel has been used to get it to you and less carbon has gone into the atmosphere. If your store doesn’t carry these items, tell them you want them to!
7. Buy less meat. Raising livestock is an incredibly resource-intensive process, and it also accounts for a very large part of our carbon emissions problem. To learn more about this issue review this United Nations report. Embracing a more veggie-focused diet is better for the environment and better for you health.
8. Cut down on disposables. Can you use a dish cloth rather than paper towels? What about cloth napkins? Do you really need to get paper plates for that BBQ? How about using a damp mop rather than a Swiffer?
9. Don’t buy toxic air fresheners and home cleaners. Do your family a favor and don’t poison them with chemicals. Find greener cleaners here. Or, better still, learn how to make your own non-toxic cleaners. It’s also much cheaper!
10. Finally, any chance you could walk or take your bike to the store? If so, you get a big green star! And an excuse to eat an extra cookie.
Related features:
What is Sustainable Cuisine?
How To Choose Sustainable Coffee
Nine Money-Saving Tips for Eating Greener
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Comments
Jane
January 29th, 2008 at 9:11 am
The fewer ingredients the better! For example, instead of the boxed rice with spices (and preservatives) added, buy plain rice and add your own spices.
jai
January 29th, 2008 at 9:35 am
when I buy vegetables that come packed in foam trays I take them out and leave the trays so that they may be re-used by the store.
Bill
January 29th, 2008 at 9:44 am
Many stores now offer discounts to shoppers using their own bags. The local stores here give you 5 cents per bag off. The only chain that refuses to oblige is Wal-Mart. Go figure. Guess whose bags we see blowing all over the Wyoming prairie?
Webkinz Parents
January 29th, 2008 at 9:45 am
I try to purchase food and veggies with the least amount of packaging possible. Hate to see items with some much wasted material just used for marketing hype.
Dinah
January 29th, 2008 at 10:53 am
I try to buy in bulk when I can and share the contents with friends if it’s something I can’t use up on my own. That saves packaging and builds friendships! Also, I’ve stopped buying paper napkins. Instead, we use cloth ones - different napkin rings identify napkins for different members of the household!
olivia
January 29th, 2008 at 11:09 am
When buying meats at a deli instead of using there plastic bags bring a reusable container big or small enough for the amount of deli meat you want.
Bethie08
January 29th, 2008 at 11:09 am
I suggest giving up bagging produce at all for larger items like bananas, apples, potatoes and so on. Even a mesh bag isn’t necessary as they’ll all be peeled or washed before eating, and a mesh bag could become just another product we don’t really need.
abigailveh1
January 29th, 2008 at 3:19 pm
I don’t use bags for any of my produce, plus I bring my own bag wherever I go. Don’t worry about putting your veggies on the conveyor belt, you have to wash them when you get home anyway!
Deb
January 29th, 2008 at 7:36 pm
I forgot my own bags so often and just got NO BAGS that it seems just as easy now. I take no bags. I have the bagger put my groceries back into the cart or basket. Then I take them to the car and into the trunk they go. I have a divider/ clutter organizer so the groceries don’t roll around and get bruised or broken. If i need to, there are bags aplenty at home for hauling the groceries in from the car. Also, I tell every checker and bagger and fellow shopper how my electric bill dropped when i stopped getting bags. It’s true! I had so many bags crammed in between the fridge and the wall that when recycled them all my fridge could breath again and it’s efficiency increased dramatically.
Life Less Plastic
January 29th, 2008 at 8:40 pm
Besides farmer’s markets, another way to get local produce is through CSAs (Community Supported Agriculture farms). You can find out if there are any that you can buy through at http://www.localharvest.org.
And another way to reduce the amount of packaging you bring home from the store is through buying from bulk bins. You can get a wide variety of items from bins including great items like oatmeal, pasta, nuts, flour, sugar, chocolates, and popcorn kernels.
Julie
January 30th, 2008 at 9:47 pm
Something that I do when I get home with all the food from the grocery store… I seperate everything that needs to go in the fridge into one pile. After I get everything I open the refridgerator ONCE and put everything in as quickly as possible. The fridge will only turn on once instead of running while you open it 15 times. Saving on electricity!
Chrissy
February 2nd, 2008 at 3:43 pm
SAVE WATER by pouring the “old” glassful from last night into potted plants instead of the drain. Also, try collecting the running water from a spout that’s waiting to become warm and using it to fill the dog bowl, boil something for dinner, water plants, etc.
misy
March 7th, 2008 at 12:22 am
For buying fruits and veggies… use a handbasket and fill that up with the open air produce not the packaged and use the express lane or an accomadating cashier they can weigh items separately or if it’s something like green peppers at my store it’s 3 for $1.00 so it’s easy to ring up and then you can put them in your canvas satchel, backpack, or your box in the back of your vehicle…
i don’t drive, so I get my canvas tote or backpack and load up…
1 handbasket is a lot of fruits and veggies!!!
Radiant Ideas
September 18th, 2008 at 2:53 pm
We recently stopped using the plastic baggies for produce but don’t use the reusable mesh sacks either. We decided to forego the bags altogether. Why put a bag of produce in another bag? We put our loose apples, oranges, potatoes, etc into the cart, group them on the conveyor belt at checkout, and they get packed into our reusable totes for the walk home. We don’t miss them at all!
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