There are so many ways to make our shopping trips ‘greener’, but where do we start? Despite the large amount of information on this subject, there are simple, effective ways we can help the environment by sustainably shopping. Here are some of our favourite tips for shopping with the environment in mind.
Shop local
Shopping local and within your community can have a positive impact on the environment. Not only are you travelling less distance there and back, for example by car, but also local, independent stores are more likely to support locally manufactured or grown produce. As a result, products have travelled less distance and therefore the environmental impact is much lower.
Reusable grocery bags
A very simple and powerful way to be mindful of the environment, is bringing your own reusable bags with you when grocery shopping (or any type of shopping for that matter). This is also a great job to give the kids, to remember the reusable shopping bag, so they gain an understanding of how this reduces the use of single waste plastics and is a more environmentally friendly option.
Shop organic and natural
Choosing organic and natural products such as household goods is a simple step to help support the environment around us. This can help reduce the amount of pesticide exposure to you and the earth. Using natural household products such as laundry detergents and toiletries can reduce chemicals going into the water system, and packaging is more often recyclable.
Reuse containers to store your produce
When you’re next at the grocery store, rather than picking up additional plastic produce bags, think about whether you really need them, or what you might have at home already to store fresh produce in.
Avoid impulse buying
Try to give each purchase the consideration it needs, to avoid wastage. Writing a shopping list on your mobile, or a scrap paper, can help you stay on track and buy what you need, therefore limiting the amount of products which end up in landfill.
