Green Living Tips 09.21.09
Six Best Ways to Reduce Your
Carbon Footprint at the Grocery Store
Once you start shopping, here are a few ways to reduce your grocery shopping carbon footprint in no time.
1. Skip the canned and frozen foods. Stick with fresh vegetables, when possible, and dried legumes that you can soak yourself. Freezing and canning food are both energy-intensive processes--both in preparing the food and then packaging it.
2. If milk is on your shopping list, try a dairy-free substitute . Dairy production requires an incredible amount of water--for the cow to drink, to raise the grain (or hopefully, grass) it needs to eat, and to process the milk. It also creates methane, which is an even more potent greenhouse gas than carbon dioxide.
3. For much the same reason, find substitutes for whatever meat is on your list.
4. Forget buying cleaning products --make your own! You'll have an easier time finding locally-sourced ingredients than brands that manufacture nearby. Plus, you can customize your own scents.
5. Buy in bulk . If you have to buy products in disposable containers, go for the larger size and portion out later. You'll save money as well as cut down on packaging. Even when containers are recyclable, reducing waste is always the better choice. (Remember the three "R"s? Reduce and reuse come first.)
6. And finally--your packaging . When you go to pick out those fresh veggies, or if you buy things like grains and cereals in bulk, avoid the small plastic bags at the store. You probably have your own at home without even trying--why not reuse those? (Think: the bread you bought last week probably came in a plastic bag that's now empty. Perfect to put some string beans in.
Recipes for homemade cleaning products can be found on the website: www.treehugger.com.
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