Is plastic-free shopping even possible?
For me food is the best and the worst thing in the world at the same time. While it provides sustenance and joy, it also generates 40% of all plastic wastes. Packaging is helpful, it’s often necessary for keeping food fresh, uncontaminated, and easy to transport, but at the same time we all want to reduce our shopping footprint. Yet, the problem is that it requires much more effort, organization and forethought than conventional shopping.
However, with a few adjustments here and there, you can eliminate the most of the plastic packaging from your life. That starts with making one step at the time. There are some choices you can make to help ditch unnecessary packaging and plastic that is contributing to tons of waste. Those choices are the most environmentally-friendly choices possible in your everyday life, especially when you go out grocery shopping.
Getting rid of packaging completely at the grocery store will be very hard and may not even be possible, but you can certainly limit your use of it. Little by little, every small change, when added up, has the potential to make a huge difference. Keep on doing it and never give up. As Bob Marley said: “If we don’t start somewhere, you’re gonna go nowhere.”
During the debate between different versions of the same product, always consider the packaging. Avoid plastic when possible. Glass is the best choice, since is not chemically reactive to food and can infinitely be recycled and used. But honestly anything is better than plastic. Not only when it comes to the environment, but also your health. Since plastic packaging is full of toxins which are leaching into your food and drinks, you should be avoiding it.
If you are not prepared and do not arrive equipped at the store, plastic packaging can be unavoidable. So… be prepared. Organise a shopping set, and always bring it with you.
So, here is what you need to do and bring with you, for your zero waste shopping routine:
BRING YOUR OWN SHOPPING BAG
If you want to reduce your plastic usage when grocery shopping, you need to start with using reusable bags.
We use a plastic bag for an average of 12 minutes, but they take hundreds of years to break down in the landfill.
If you do not have an old bag that you can use, the best types to buy are cotton bags, as nylon and polyester are also made from plastic. Does not need to be anything fancy as long as it is not plastic is just perfect! Nevertheless, if it’s something that you like, you are more likely to be using it. Take a look at our selection of bags on our endless shop page, if you are looking to get a shopping bag.
Many of us have reusable cloth bags yet, the challenge is remembering them! I make sure that I always keep one in my daily bag and one in my car/bike, so I do not forget it whenever I go shopping.
If you are looking for a realistic and easy way to reduce your plastic waste, you should get a water filtration system.
People around the globe buy a total of one million plastic bottles per minute. That’s almost 1.5 billion plastic bottles per day.
Since you can buy your own water filtration system, there is really no need to buy bottled water. For me, this is not only waste of plastic, but also waste of money. Best is if you can afford to get an alkaline ionizer water machine. Since they create a higher pH level than the regular drinking water, the water has antiaging properties, colon-cleansing properties, other detoxifying properties and even cancer resistance.
And, for water on the go, you can use a thermos or a refillable bottle. Once again, does not need to be anything fancy. You can reuse juice, tomato or milk bottles. Any bottle will really do the job. Nevertheless, if you have a thermos you can not only use it to keep water cool, but also to keep other drinks hot. Check out our selection of thermoses on our endless shop page, if you still don’t have one.
GET A WATER FILTER AND DITCH BOTTLED WATER
USE REUSABLE FOOD CONTAINERS SUCH AS BOXES, JARS, AND PAPER BAGS
If you want to ditch packaging, you can bring your own containers with you when shopping. That way you do not have to use the plastic bags out of convenience.
Recent statistics show that over 40% of all plastics waste comes from packaging.
For me, one of the best ways for a plastic reduction is to stock up on bulk foods. Those usally include items like beans, nuts, olives, spices and many more. Since I am a vegan, that is my favourite types of foods, and if you ask me, the healthiest and most nutritional foods as well.
Instead of storing them in disposable plastic containers, I use glass jars, metal boxes or cloth and paper bags, depending on what food I’m storing.
If you are tired of all the waste generated by your trips to the grocery store, you should shop from fresh markets or the daily counters.
More than 15% of the money we spend on products pays for packaging-most of which goes straight in the bin.
If you are purchasing meat, fish, cheese, or olives you are better off going to a counter, than buying something prepacked and wrapped in plastic. I think, those foods are more likely to be local and definitely more fresh. You can bring your own paper, or boxes to wrap and pack these products in, so they do not get wrapped in plastic.
CHOOSE THE DELI COUNTER OVER THE PRE-PACKAGED GOODS
BUY UNPACKED FRUITS AND VEGETABLES
If you want to support local food and reduce your plastic waste at the same time, you should go to the fresh markets.
Recent studies showed that 50% of plastic is used only once.
I always go to the fresh fruit markets. Whenever I cannot, I just buy the unpacked fruits and veggies from the grocery store. For transportation, most of it is packed into one large cardboard box to keep products separate and in place. I just take the whole cardboard box and stuff all my fruits and veggies in it. It’ss actually better than carrying them in a bag.
If you want to come up with alternative solutions to plastic, you should look for items with cardboard, metal or glass packaging.
Only 50% of recyclables from the bathroom care are actually recyclable.
I choose the items I buy often because of their packaging. Whether it comes to toiletries such as shampoo bars, conditioner, body wash, tooth paste or when it comes to packaging foods such as pasta, rice, and eggs. I always pick in the articles that are not packed in plastic. This is easy way to ditch packaging, and potentially save money as well.