When shopping at the grocery store, have you ever looked at the items in your cart and noticed how much extra package there is? Some of this packaging is recyclable, but other items end up being thrown out in the garbage. Flo Busnello, the Recycling Queen at Waste Management, has a few helpful tips when it comes to reducing the amount of garbage you bring home from the grocery store.
When you’re in the produce section of the grocery store, Busnello recommends being selective with what vegetables and fruit need to be put in a clear plastic bag.
“A lot of fruit and vegetables don’t necessarily have to be put in bags. Bananas are a perfect example. When we get home we’re going to peel that banana, so there’s no need for that extra bag,” Busnello says. Another great tip from the Recycling Queen is to bring your reusable bags with you to the grocery store. Keep them handy by storing them in your vehicle.
“We all know that we’re going to be charged five cents to use bags from the grocery store, so save yourself the five cents by bringing reusable or cloths bags with you.”
Another culprit of extra waste at the grocery store is prepackaged foods. Packaged cookies are a perfect example to showcase the amount of extra packaging used.
“A lot of the packaging that comes with cookies may or may not be recyclable. It normally comes in a plastic bag that’s crinkly, that is not recyclable,” Busnello says. “As well as the plastic film to keep cookies fresh and the plastic tray that gives us perfect cookies.” Some of these different components of packaging may end up in the landfill.
To help reduce waste, Busnello has a few recommendations to still enjoy your cookies, while eliminating extra garbage.
“Some options to reduce the amount of packaging you’re bringing home from packaged cookies is to go and venture to different areas of the grocery store. The bakery makes cookies and puts them in either paper bags or clear containers, which are recyclable,” says Busnello, adding that the bulk section is another great place to buy cookies. You can buy as many as you want, and the plastic bag you use to bring them home can be put in your Blue Box. But the best tip to reducing packaging when you have a cookie craving is to make your own at home.
Aside from reducing the amount of packaging, reducing the amount that you shop will also help eliminate extra waste. The 30 day rule is a mental state that is designed to help you determine if you really need that extra item.
“If I think of something that I really, really need, then I think about it for 30 days. If I still have that urge on day 30 then I’ll buy it,” says Busnello. If you’ve lost the urge, then you really didn’t need it in the first place. You’ll reduce the amount of money you spend and it’s one more item that won’t potentially end up in the landfill along with the accompanying packaging.
For more great tips on reducing household waste, visit
www.hamilton.ca/waste.
