Food shopping
One of the harder to achieve in "zero waste" is food shopping! This is because most shops sell items in packaging which cannot be continuously recycled or composted. In an ideal world, a zero waste style shop would be my go-to for shopping all the time, but this just isn't reasonable!
Wherever you go shopping, don't forget you reusable carrier bags!
Also, another thing to think about are produce bags. In the supermarkets, they provide the little plastic ones for loose fruit and veg. I have recently purchased some reusable ones which are made from netted cotton with a drawstring closure, made by A Slice of Green. I also have a cotton fabric one, which I use to purchase pasta in bulk, such as this one. If you don't wish to purchase these just yet, you could always just reuse the plastic ones to prevent the single plastic waste!
Typical supermarkets:
When buying produce, avoid packaging such as plastic, boxes with a plastic bag inside, boxes which have a film on them, mesh bags (the type that oranges/lemons come in), and look out for those in paper/cardboard, metal, loose produce, other compostable materials etc.
The other thing to look out for is bulk produce, where you take your own container and fill it with the amount you require. If this is not available in your area, then try to get a larger amount to save on packaging waste. This only really works on non-food and dry goods, such as pasta, cans etc. as the food may go off before you have the chance to eat it.
Zero Waste supermarkets:
My local zero waste shop is The Clean Kilo, based in Digbeth, Birmingham. This is still a trek as it is towards central Birmingham, and can take up to 30 minutes to get to! I do love this shop however, because everything is bought in bulk. This means you either take your own containers (anything from plastic containers to a more sustainable one such as metal or glass) or purchase ones from the shop.
Wherever you go shopping, don't forget you reusable carrier bags!
Also, another thing to think about are produce bags. In the supermarkets, they provide the little plastic ones for loose fruit and veg. I have recently purchased some reusable ones which are made from netted cotton with a drawstring closure, made by A Slice of Green. I also have a cotton fabric one, which I use to purchase pasta in bulk, such as this one. If you don't wish to purchase these just yet, you could always just reuse the plastic ones to prevent the single plastic waste!
Typical supermarkets:
When buying produce, avoid packaging such as plastic, boxes with a plastic bag inside, boxes which have a film on them, mesh bags (the type that oranges/lemons come in), and look out for those in paper/cardboard, metal, loose produce, other compostable materials etc.
The other thing to look out for is bulk produce, where you take your own container and fill it with the amount you require. If this is not available in your area, then try to get a larger amount to save on packaging waste. This only really works on non-food and dry goods, such as pasta, cans etc. as the food may go off before you have the chance to eat it.
Zero Waste supermarkets:
My local zero waste shop is The Clean Kilo, based in Digbeth, Birmingham. This is still a trek as it is towards central Birmingham, and can take up to 30 minutes to get to! I do love this shop however, because everything is bought in bulk. This means you either take your own containers (anything from plastic containers to a more sustainable one such as metal or glass) or purchase ones from the shop.
- Take your container to the scales and weigh it, printing off a sticker for the tare weight
- Fill with the produce you want
- Take the filled container back to the scales, scan the tare weight and select the product you have filled it with, printing off the sticker (with the cost) for the checkout
Have a look on the internet to see if there are any shops like this near you, and just visit one day to see if you could utilise it (even if it is just once a month).
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